Bonds of Consent
by Buffybot76
Summary: Kurama and Hiei require the help of two human females on a mission to infiltrate a slave trading ring. Who else are they going to ask other, than Keiko and Shizuru? But what happens when emotions get in the way of the mission? alternate pairings Future
1. Default Chapter

**Title:** _Bonds of Consent_

**Rating:** _NC-17_

**Pairings:** _Kurama(Youko)/Keiko, Hiei/Shizuru_

**Setting:** _AU, obviously_

**Summary:** _Kurama and Hiei require the help of two ningen females on a mission to infiltrate a slave trading ring. Who else are they going to ask other, than Keiko and Shizuru? But what happens when emotions get in the way of the mission?_

**Disclaimer:** _These characters are, sadly, not mine. They belong to the creators of the wonderful Japanese anime Yu Yu Hakusho: Yoshihiro Togashi._

_- Chapter 1 -_

Two pairs of eyes--one fiery red, the other a dazzling shade of green--stared at the chibi-fied figure perched before them on top of the office desk.

"Forgive me, Koenma," the red haired kitsune began, "But I don't think I heard you quite right..."

"Oh, but you did hear right, Kurama." The child ruler of Reikai replied. "Believe me, if there was any other way to go about this, I'd be more than happy to let you do it. But unfortunately, there is no other way. Yusuke, Kuwabara and Botan are on another assignment and won't be back for some time. With them gone that only leaves you two. Which is good actually, because Yusuke would be useless on this case."

"Hn." Hiei stood, glaring, with arms crossed over his chest. "So, you expect Kurama to assume his Youko form so that he and I might infiltrate a human slave ring run by an outlaw band of demons?"

"That is correct, Hiei." The junior ruler replied. "But there **is** somebody... rather, **two** somebodies that you will need to enlist the help of."

"And who might that be?" Kurama asked curiously.

"Shizuru Kuwabara and Keiko Yukimura."

"**WHAT**?!" The two demons exclaimed as one, causing Koenma to cringe slightly. Recovering, Kurama contemplated a moment before speaking again.

"Hm... we might be able to enlist Shizuru's help. But with all due respect sir, I very much doubt that Keiko would agree. Since she and Yusuke split up, she has not had much contact with the spirit or demon world. She barely even speaks to me at school."

The slight sadness that tinged Kurama's voice as he said this caused Hiei to glance sideways at his friend while Koenma sighed. "Yes, I know this Kurama. But we really have no other choice."

"And just why do we need help from two ningen females?" Hiei sneered, raising an eyebrow in question.

"We need two human females to act as your concubine so that you both will fit in more with the crowd of slave dealers. Father has given me two weeks for you to get the girls to agree to help and for you to teach them everything they will need to know and how they will need to act around you."

"**WHAT**?!" Again the two demons gaped at Koenma.

Koenma rolled his eyes. "It's the only way, and there's no backing out now... Father would be disappointed, and you **know** what that means..."

Hiei snorted, "And why should I care?"

"A good word would go in for you two, and Hiei, you have already restarted a bad record."

Hiei glared at the child ruler while Kurama spoke, "I still don't think that Keiko will agree to this... Although, I guess it is worth a shot. I will see what I can do."

Koenma nodded in satisfaction. "I will need to know your pairings by tomorrow so that I can submit the correct paperwork. That's not too difficult for you, is it?"

"Hardly." Hiei drawled.

"Good, now hurry up and get going." Koenma encouraged, and with a nod, Hiei and Kurama left the office.

~*~ 

The pair walked down the sidewalk side by side, Hiei with his ever stoic expression, Kurama with his hands tucked into his pockets, deep in thought. After a moment's silence, Kurama looked up.

"Hiei, I think it would be best if **I** were to approach Keiko about this..." he said, calmly.

"Fine." Hiei said, monosyllabic as ever.

Kurama nodded, "So I shall leave Shizuru to you then."

"Hn. She will probably be more willing to help anyway." the fire demon muttered before zipping off in the direction of the Kuwabara residence, leaving his companion to continue on alone.

~*~ 

Extremely loud music poured from the upper window of the Kuwabara residence and as the fire demon arrived, perching upon the branch of a tree near the house, he winced as the blaring sound met his sensitive ears.

"Baka ningens." he muttered under his breath, silently wondering how humans could listen to such abbrasive noise and still call it music.

Silently jumping from the tree branch to the window that the loud 'music' was coming from, he peered in, wondering where Shizuru was, hoping to get this little talk with her over with quickly. Spotting the young woman lying on the bed, reading some kind of book, he once again silently wondered at how odd humans could be. Hiei knocked on the window pane, then waited for a response from Shizuru, but was annoyed to see no reaction. Noticing that the window was open a crack, he opened it wide enough that he could get in and slipped into the noisy room.

He approached, placing his hands behind his back as he leaned over the girl lying prone on the bed. She still hadn't reacted to his presence, so enbroiled in the book she was reading. Rolling his eyes, Hiei decided that drastic measures would have to be taken and so he reached out to nudge the still oblivious Shizuru. Hiei's hand had barely made contact with the girl's shoulder when she reacted.

Shizuru had been reading in her room, **alone**, when she was jolted back to reality by a hand grazing her shoulder. Her quick reflexes allowed her to roll away from the offender, but her mind was more focused on how they had gotten into her room without her notice than the amount of room left on the bed. The fire demon watched, amused, as the brown haired girl met with the edge of her bed before her flip was done, then plummented quite comically onto the floor. He chuckled darkly even as her head popped up to glare at him over the edge of her bed.

Growling, Shizuru rose to stand opposite of the 'intruder'. "You!," she exclaimed, recognizing the dark haired demon that her brother seemed to constantly complain about. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"I have a favor to request of you," Hiei said, a sour look coming over his face at the word 'favor'.

A look of suspicion overcame the irritated look and Shizuru frowned. "What sort of 'favor'?"

"A rather large one." he muttered.

Puzzled, Shizuru wondered silently what sort of favor would required a demon, this one in particular, to ask help from a human. "Wait a minute. Why aren't you asking my little bro?"

Hiei wanted to smirk. "He isn't appropriate for this type of favor," he told her, dropping a little hint.

Growing irritated with the beating around the bush that was going on, Shizuru crossed her arms over her chest and stated flatly. "I'm not agreeing to anything until you explain everything."

Shoving his hands into his pants pockets, Hiei leaned his back against the wall behind him. "There is a special case that Kurama and I have been assigned to and we need the help of two human females. Koenma thought that since you and Keiko are already familar with us, it would be easier."

"Keiko?" Shizuru asked, surprise filled her voice and she shook her head. "I doubt Keiko would agree."

"Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, Kurama is on his way over to discuss the matter with her."

Shizuru looked down thoughtfully as she thought over what Hiei had said. Finally she looked up, catching his red eyed stare. "I'll do it. But **only** if Keiko agrees too."

"Agreeable."

~*~ 

Kurama took a deep breath as he stood in front of the Yukimura's family noodle shop. After the sense of unease he had been feeling passed, he made his way inside and up to the counter. An older looking man stood behind the register and he looked up from counting the money he held in his hand. The man placed the money back into the register and smiled welcomingly.

"May I help you?"

"Yes you can. I was wondering if Keiko were here. And if so, may I speak with her briefly?"

"Depends on what you want," Keiko said as she stepped off the last step that led to her family's upstairs apartment.

Mr. Yukimura looked from his daughter to the red haired young man and back again before smiling. "Well, if you two kids will excuse me, I've got to retrieve some supplies from the back room. Keiko, could you watch the store for a moment," he asked as he headed through a door behind the counter.

"Yes, Father," Keiko said just before he disappeared through the curtain that sheilded the store front from the rest of the shop.

"Long time no see, Shuichi," she said, turning back towards where he stood by the counter.

Kurama nodded. "Yes, it has. Would it be alright if we were to sit down somewhere to talk? There is a favor that I need to ask of you... privately."

Keiko nodded, her curiosity peaked at what sort of favor she could do for the red headed Spirit Detective and gestured to one of the boothes near the back of the shop. Once they had taken a seat across from one another, Keiko asked the question that was plaguing her mind. "What favor do you need from me, Kurama?" purposefully using the kitsune's name instead of his human counterparts.

"Well, actually, it's more of a favor for Koenma. There is a special case that cannot be handled by Yusuke and Kazuma," the kitsune detective told her.

Keiko raised an eyebrow at him. "Since when do you call Kuwabara by his first name?"

"Since Koenma has sent Hiei to ask Shizuru for her help as well," he replied.

"This... doesn't have anything to do with... Reikai does it..?" Keiko's voice wavered as she asked.

Kurama glanced down briefly before once again meeting Keiko's gaze. "Partly. Koenma has been informed of a human slave ring being run in the Makai by a group of outlaw demons. He wants Hiei and I to infiltrate the ring and find it's leader so that we might be able to bring them in. The catch is, we can only enter the stronghold if we are slave owners ourselves. So in order to do this, we need the assistance of two human females to act as our..." he faltered on the last word. "...concubines."

"Concubines?" Keiko's voice came out more like a squeak than anything else.

Her head was swimming. Koenma wanted her... the second in command of the spirit world, wanted her to inflitrate a gang of slaveowners... _'As a sex slave???'_

Seeing that Keiko was distessed by the idea, he spoke up quickly to try to calm her fears. "You won't have to actually **do** anything. Just act the part in public. There are a few small things that, if you agree to help, you'll have to do," Kurama said, his voice soft and sympathetic.

_'Agree'_, a silent voice spoke in the back of her mind... _'You know you want to.'_ Keiko shook the voice from her head. She had sworn to herself when Yusuke left, that she would never have anything to do with the Spirit World, anything unhuman, ever again. But why did she feel her resolve suddenly slipping when she gazed into Kurama's sincere eyes...

The words rose unbidden to her throat. "If I agree, what 'things' would be required?"

"You would have to dress differently, like some of the slaves, and you would have to act submissive in front of the other slave owners. You would have to get a mark that would mark you as a slave, but it would be for your own saftey, so that the other slave owners wouldn't try to claim you," Kurama explain, his eyes watching for any kind of reaction that would mean she wouldn't help.

"W-what kind of mark?" she stammered, but showed no sign of disagreeing.

"The mark would consist of a small bite, nothing serious, probably wouldn't even hurt. But like I said before, it would be more for yours and Shizuru's protection than anything else," Kurama explained.

_'Alright',_ Keiko thought. _'I'll just think through this logically. Like an Algebra problem. Step by step. In that case... how much protection would this bite give me? Would it still be dangerous?'_ She shook her head, as if clearing it. "Alright. Why does Reikai want Shizuru and I to help you? Why not Botan?"

"Botan was sent with Yusuke and Kazuma to help with their case, making her unavailable. Besides, we need at least two females.. **human** females," the red head explained. "Let me just tell you this; Reikai, Hiei, and myself will do everything in our powers, which is alot, to keep you and Shizuru safe if you agree to help."

"Kurama..." Keiko finally spoke up after a moment of silence. "I wonder how a bite mark can not be painful?"

Kurama lifted a hand and scratched the back of his head. "It's very hard to explain. There's a small power transfusion, smaller than the standard one used in a usual mating mark," he told her, not sure why he even mentioned the mating mark to her. "The power that would be transferred to you through the bite would kind of desensitize the area so you wouldn't feel it. While it's desensitized, the wound would heal at an advanced rate, leaving the mark behind."

"You haven't said where the bite will be located..."

Kurama frowned to himself, seemingly lost in thought at her question. "I asked Koenma, but he would not tell me... Apparently, that mystery shall be revealed when -- if you agree to help us."

"And if I don't agree? There's someone else you can ask, isn't there?" Keiko bit the words off with uncharacteristic bitterness. With that puzzled air in his eyes, he looked more interested in finding out about the bite mark's location than her.

"No, there is no other human with knowlege of Reikai or Makai. You and Shizuru are our only option, Keiko." came the honest reply.

"If you say.. that I'm the only one who can stop this.... I guess I have no choice..."

Kurama sighed silently in relief. She had agreed, albeit reluctantly. But still, she had agreed. "Thank you, Keiko. We will be meeting with Koenma in the morning for further information and instructions." Kurama said. "I'll be by around 8 to escort you."

Strangely enough, her first thought when Kurama left the store was, _'what in the three worlds am I going to have to wear??'_

~*~ 

That evening, Keiko left the noodle shop and went directly over to Shizuru's. She knocked on the door, shifting impatiently as she waited for someone to answer. Before long the door opened to reveal just the person she was seeking.

Shizuru's perpectually sleepy expression brightened. "Keiko! Come in..."

"Hey, Shizuru." Keiko replied as she stepped through the doorway. "Um... do you think we could go up to your room? We need to talk."

"Kurama has let you in on the latest mission." It was a statement, not a question, leveled at Keiko's eyes with gentleness.

"Yeah, he did." Keiko sighed. Obviously, Shizuru's parents weren't around so they were able to speak freely. "So, what did you tell Hiei?"

Shizuru sighed and took out her pack of cigarettes and lit one taking a drag of it; releasing the smoke into the air before replying, "Whatever...I agreed to it." Her tone of voice made her sound as if it was no big deal but you could tell in her eyes that she was skeptical about the whole thing.

Keiko realized her friend was just as uneasy about this whole thing as she was. "I did too. Kurama is supposed to be by in the morning to take me to meet with Koenma. I'm guessing Hiei told you the same thing?"

"Yeah, close to it anyway. Not as polite as I think Kurama would have said it, but the same." Shizuru replied taking a long drag of her cigarette shifting her weight from one foot to the other as she released the smoke again.

"Well... it looks like we're officially helping out the Spriit Detectives again." Keiko sighed before all confidence that she'd made the right decision left her. "What was I thinking?!"

Shizuru shook her head, sighing as she put her cigarette out in a nearby ash tray, "Correction Keiko, dear... What were we **both** thinking."

~*~ 

A few hours passed with both girls retreating to Shizuru's room with sodas and snacks to discuss the matters of what they were told about the mission. Before long, a matter soon came up that was shocking... "How do you feel about the whole marking thing Shizuru?" Keiko said.

Shizuru's eyes widened a bit but soon returned to normal and she replied in her usual voice, "What?! They've got to mark us? You're kidding me, right Keiko?"

Keiko looked shocked at Shizuru's reaction, "You mean Hiei didn't tell you about it?"

"He didn't tell me anything about that..." She replied trailing off a bit before continuing, "What's the purpose of it anyway?"

Keiko looked down at the floor for a bit before replying, "It's to give proof that we are in fact theirs...and to provide protection... that sort of thing. Kurama said that Koenma would explain more about it tomorrow."

"Now I'm really not so sure about doing this...I mean we don't know too much on the what in true fact the mark is...who's to say it doesn't have any side-effects?" Shizuru said her voice dropping to a soft almost whispered tone.

"Maybe...but I don't think Kurama would do anything that would hurt us, Shizuru." Keiko said soothingly.

"and Hiei would?" Shizuru raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"I didn't say that!" Keiko added quickly. "It's just... I know Kurama a little better than Hiei sure, but... I just feel we can trust them."

"Really? Keiko, what proof do we even have that he won't hurt us? Sure, we know Kurama wouldn't... but are you absolutely sure about Hiei? All we have to go on is our own intuition and the fact we see them periodically... Your's may be saying to trust him... Mine is telling me to question it more."

Keiko paused for a moment before answering. "Kurama trusts Hiei. He said himself that Hiei would do everything in his power to protect us, so... yes. I'm sure about Hiei."

Shizuru sighed before replying, "Okay, Keiko... I'll go with you on this... but I hope you know I'm only going by your's and Kurama's word."

Keiko smiled. "Thanks, Shizuru."

Shizuru rolled her eyes before giving a small hint of a smile, "Yeah...whatever." Shizuru tossed a can of tea at her, and plopped down on her bed. "So... Here's to a successful trip to the Makai! And a prayer for Koenma's babe form replacing his baby form in the conference."

~*~ 

The next morning found the four sitting in a room in an old office building downtown. The room was furnished with three chairs placed in the center and two changing screens on one side of the room. Keiko and Shizuru each took a seat in one of the three chairs, leaving the two demons to each take a place behind one of the girls' chair. Hiei behind Shizuru's, Kurama behind Keiko's. Twenty minutes had passed before Shizuru began to fidget.

"Wonder what's keeping the toddler?" she muttered irritably, not noticing the slight smirk her comment brought to the fire demon's lips.

"I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't call me that, Shizuru. It's very annoying" came the reply. The four turned to see Koenma, in teen form, standing in the doorway.

"If you would be on time, I wouldn't have to call you a toddler," Shizuru replied.

Hiei's smirk lingered a second longer, Kurama noticed, before it slid from his face as Koenma fully entered the room. Taking a seat in the last chair in the room, he nodded to the group before speaking.

"Good, I see that you've decided on the pairings..." Koenma looked up. "And I assume you've both told the girls the details?"

"Of course," Kurama said for them, Hiei barely nodding his assent.

"and they agree?"

"They do."

"Oh good!" Koenma seemed relieved. "Now all we need is to go over the basics and get you two prepared."

"P-p-prepared?" Keiko stammered uneasily.

"The basics?" Shizuru added, eyebrow arched in suspicion.

"Proper costuming, of course, to fit your roles..." Koenma replied before beginning to recite a long list of "behavioral proceedures", and other do's and don'ts. When he finally stopped to catch his breath, Keiko eyed the teenager's face nervously.

"Anything else?" she asked, half fearing his answer.

"Besides total submissive obedience?"

A hand whapped the demigod of death on the head. "Baka,.... you could have just said that, instead of telling us all those rules..." Shizuru frowned at him.

"Yes... well... I only wanted you to get the full picture of what you will be needed to do." Koenma whined, rubbing the sore spot where Shizuru had hit him.

Shizuru sighed before returning back to her seat, "Whatever... You could have still told us that before rattling off those rules toddler. After all, most of the rules fall under that category anyway."

Shizuru had just sat down when Keiko startled everyone as she shot to her feet suddenly. Turning around as if to make a run for the door, she instead wound up bumping into Kurama, who still stood behind her. Warm hands came to rest on her shoulders and Kurama could feel her body quaking slightly beneath them.

"I don't know if I can do this after all, Kurama..." she whispered frantically into his chest.

Kurama brought his hand up to gently cup her chin, tilting her head up so that she was looking into his eyes. "Keiko... No one is going to force you into this mission... You have the choice... Just remember that I won't let anything bad happen to you if you decide to go. But if you don't go I completely understand." Kurama's eyes reflected a hint of hurt and sadness before returning to their comforting gaze.

Keiko's eyes softened as she gazed at Kurama. She didn't know why, but that small expression of hurt from him tore at her heart and she found herself not wanting Kurama to think that she didn't trust him. She did,. but it was just the whole idea of being in a den full of demons... dangerous ones at that. She shuddered again as a memory flared to life before her eyes.

_~*~ Flashback ~*~_

_Keiko and Yusuke were passing through a park on their way to a movie, the air was pleasantly warm and there were blooming flowers in sight of where they walked, but even they went unnoticed. The park was well lit by lamp posts lining the paved pathway they followed, but neither admired the beauty of the decorative lights._

_Keiko was silently worrying over the rift that had developed between them over time. And even though they both took steps to fix the gaping hole in their relationship, they had only grew further apart. They hadn't even held hands for almost a month now, something that worried her greatly._

_She knew she still cared for Yusuke, more than one would think she would with all the problems they had, and Yusuke told her that he cared for her more than anything else and that he wanted to work things out with her. But as time passed, it seemed the wedge that had been driven between them by unknown forces only grew larger._

_Keiko was just about to say something to Yusuke, anything to break the heavy silence between them, when a clawed hand grabbed her around the waist from behind, dragging her into the darkness of the surrounding park._

_"Scream and I'll make this even more painful." a silky voice spoke near her ear as another clawed hand clamped around her throat._

_From where her abductor stood high atop one of the trees, Keiko could see Yusuke still walking along the path, her sudden absence unnoticed as of yet. The demon that had nabbed her had been very stealthy indeed. She watched, her eyes growing wide in fear as Yusuke paused, finally realizing that she was not there anymore. She felt so helpless as she watched Yusuke begin to frantically scan the surrounding area of the park._

_Suddenly, Keiko's stomach lurched upward into her throat as the demon leapt from the tree branch it was perched upon with her still in its grasp. Yusuke spun around, facing the demon as it called out to his target. Once again, Keiko found herself being used as a tool to throw Yusuke off his game. To get him hurt, or worse, killed._

_Keiko felt the demon's arms release her abruptly and she fell to the ground in a heap. She rose to her hands and knees just as Yusuke's voice called out._

_"SPIRIT GUN!!"_

_Turning, she made out a bright flash of light streaking through the sky, striking the demon that stood only feet from her, a sharp clawed hand outstretched toward her. She screamed as the demon tunbled the rest of the way toward her and she tried to leap away. She felt a searing pain ignite, just below her shoulderblade and blaze an agonizing trail down along her right side, ending along her hipbone._

_"KEIKO!!"_

_Gasping in pain, Keiko stumbled away from the fallen demon, crashing against something solid. She looked up, catching Yusuke's stricken eyes with her own. In that instant, a silent agreement was communicated between the two. This couldn't go on. They would always care for one another, but they couldn't be together. Ever._

_~*~ End Flashback~*~_

Keiko felt her eyes fill with bitter tears, and slowly the vision of Yusuke's features began to blur. His soft brown eyes shimmered, lightening until they became a pair of dazzling emeralds. His slicked back, black hair grew at a rapid pace, bleeding the inky tendrils into a bright red that framed the femininely handsome face. Slowly, Keiko blinked, shook her head slightly, then looked again and found herself staring deeply into the concerned eyes of Kurama.

Kurama's hands gripped Keiko's shoulders slightly as he watched her slip into an almost trance-like state. Growing more and more worried by the minute, Kurama gave a sigh of relief when finally she shook her head slightly as if to clear it before looking back up at him.

Giving her shoulders a reasurring squeeze, he asked, "Are you alright, Keiko?"

"I'm just... not sure this is such a great idea. I want to help but... It's all so weird." She glanced up to meet his eyes. Why did Kurama have to be so gentle and encouraging? He made everything seem so easy when this couldn't be a simple mission no matter how he defined it.

Kurama smiled softly. "I understand, Keiko. And everything that I said before still stands. If you do not wish to participate in this mission, you do not have to."

She returned the smile. "I want to help. I'm just not sure; becoming a sex slave is... a pretty big favor. My modesty and independence will be sacrificed. I'll be nothing more than a piece of human meat. I don't want to whine but I can't expect you to be there at all times to protect me since you're on a mission. At the same time, I'll want you to because I'll be afraid on my own."

Keiko turned to glance at Koenma. He didn't seem worried. 'Did he ever seem worried', she wondered, a bit resentfully. He certainly didn't seem concerned about sending her into a world where she was nothing but a sex toy. Of course, he was also a male. He probably had no concept of what that meant to her. Her frown deepened, and she opened her mouth, a rebuke on her lips when Kurama suddenly intervened, turning her to face him once more.

"Keiko, I know you are uncertain about the mission. But if you can be certain about anything, then be certain of this... I will **not** let anything happen to you while we are there. I promise."

She sighed deeply and nodded. "Okay, but don't ask me again because I'm giving you fair warning. I'm only helping this once."

Kurama smiled a relieved smile. "Thank you, Keiko." They stared at one another a moment longer, before the sound of a throat being subtly cleared caused them to turned back to where Koenma, Shizuru and Hiei stood.

Koenma nodded, "Good, now that that's settled, why don't we get you girls dressed, shall we?"

Keiko turned back as two large purple guys from the Reikai came in bearing cardboard boxes. Hiei remained where he was, his eyes cast off in another direction while Shizuru and Keiko headed toward the table. Koenma flipped open the lids and Keiko reached inside.

"What exactly..." she pulled out a small black leather garment and fiddled with it. "What... is this?"

Shizuru plucked the garment from her hands, sliding her fingers along the circular black collar with the silver spikes. "A collar? What the hell are we, your dogs?"

"Thankfully, no." Hiei sneered. "Although I'm sure dogs would be much less hassle than you."

Shizuru's eyes appraised the fire demon with amusement. She walked up, and looked down. He was half the size as her. "Your dog? Whatever, Shrimp"

Growling at her response, the fire demon swiftly circled to stand behind her, hands clasped behind his back, smirk now firmly in place. "Shall we see if your mouth responds as quickly as the rest of your body?"

No one in the room knew whether the stoic demon was referring to fighting, or something more intimate. Frankly, Kurama was too amused to ask. Hiei's eyes narrowed dangerously, but luckily Kurama chose that moment to intervene before Hiei decided that Shizuru would taste good burnt.

"You two do know we don't have time for this, don't you?" an amused smirk hung about the kitsune's lips as Hiei once again crossed his arms in a huff. Ironically, Shizuru moved into a similar pose.

"Uh...You expect this to actually cover everything?"

Keiko's inquiry brought everyone's attention back to where she was still standing at the table, holding a tiny snippet of cloth that did a poor impression of a top.

"Actually, no, that's the point to it." Koenma replied, not noticing the slight blushes that were creeping onto his two Spirit Detectives' faces.

"Ngh... i-it is?" Keiko managed to say as she eyed the scrap of material again with a critical eye.

"You're suppose to be concubines, and therefore have to dress the part," Koenma replied.

"I understand that, but... does it have to be so... so... small?"

"Is this really necessary, sir?" Kurama asked, head bowed slightly to hide his flushed face.

"Yes, I'm afraid it is. There will be other concubines there wearing less than this, so count yourselves lucky," Koenma responded to both their questions. "Besides, you won't be very far from each other if the girls are wearing this," he added, holding up a long leather strap with a clasp at one end and a loop at the other.

Keiko whimpered. Shizuru grimaced. Hiei smirked again. And Kurama.... well, Kurama's blush deepened as his inner Youko flared to life within him. **_'Oh, the possibilities...'_** the fox spirit chuckled.

"A leash, how appropriate," Hiei said, the smirk almost breaking into a full fledge smile.

Shizuru growled at the fire demon again. "I'll show you appropriate if you don't shut up, Shorty!"

"Now, now you two," Koenma interrupted as Shizuru once again glared at the smirking demon. "You have plenty of time to play later. Right now you train. If you girls would, please step behind the screens and get dressed." Koenma continued, gesturing toward the two screens across the room.

"Dressed? Ha, we might as well be naked for as much as those clothes cover up," Shizuru complained.

"Oh, and don't forget these," Koenma added, holding out what looked like a bunch of string tied together on the end of each index finger.

Shizuru sighed and shook her head. "Great, we get to wear butt floss."

"Huh?" Keiko's eyes seemed to widen more as each article of apparel was revealed.

Shizuru grabbed her pile of clothing with a huff and headed toward one of the changing screens, but stopped when she heard Koenma call out her name.

"You forgot this," he said as he tossed her the dental floss that was imitating a thong.

Shizuru caught the so called garment with ease and glared at the young demi-god. "Shove it toddler," she growled. "The only reason I'm doing this is so Keiko isn't there alone."

"How noble," Hiei grumbled.

Reacting quickly, Keiko scooped up her clothing in one arm and snagged Shizuru's arm with the other, effectively pulling her toward the screen and **away** from Hiei.

"Will you two cut it out please! This is hard enough as it is!" she chided, propelling the larger girl behind one screen while she disappeared behind the other.

Kurama stood back, taking a glance at Hiei. The shorter fire demon looked completely undisturbed with the assignment. Had Hiei frequented these types of places before? He didn't exactly feel at ease, at least, not with Keiko and Shizuru going along as their 'concubines'.

Youko had spent plenty of hours in the arms of women. It was one of his favorite places.

**_'I've been thinking, this 'training' business could be fun. I could teach that innocent little human lots of interesting things'._**

Shuichi frowned, not liking Youko's direction of thought. _'Don't start.'_

**_'You don't get out enough Shuichi. Lighten up, let me have some fun with the girl. Don't worry, I won't hurt her. At least, not in a way she won't like.'_**

_'You're going to control your urges on this assignment.'_ And it was a statement. Not a suggestion.

Youko was quiet in response, but the lapse was momentary as Keiko hesitantly stepped out from behind her screen and into view.

"Um... Do I have to wear this the whole time? I feel a little... exposed." She admitted, embarrassed. Her arms wrapped, oddly enough around her waist, instead of the more reasonable chest area, much to Youko's delight.

**_'Oh yeah! The clothes you can snap off with a flick of the wrist are always best!'_**

_'Shut up!'_ Shuichi chided, afraid Youko's avid interest would only add to his growing discomfort.

Shizuru stepped out a moment later, hands on her hips. "This sucks."

She turned her eyes toward Hiei who had glanced toward her. He snorted. "You honestly want her to wear that? I've seen twigs that would look better in it."

"I always knew you paid too much attention to trees." Shizuru muttered sourly.

"Alright, then, let's go!" Koenma said briskly, to dispell the dangerous aura in the air.

"Go? Go where?" Keiko asked, almost afraid of the answer. She wasn't at all ready to go anywhere. Not with the way she was currently dressed.

"I hope you're not going to be parading us through the streets like this," Shizuru stated. Mostly for Keiko's benefit.

Koenma looked thoughtful. "Not today. Right now we're just going to the training hall."

"You have a training hall for concubines?"

"Nope, but we have a bar downstairs." He grinned turning to step out the door. "Come along."

Keiko paused, not moving. "I have to... walk in front of people in this? I feel like... I feel like I've just survived an encounter with a demon in my underwear."

Kurama hid a smile behind his hand. "It's quite all right, Keiko. You look perfectly fine."

She turned a frown toward him. "Perfectly fine?"

**_'More then fine'_**, his alter ego thought.

_'Shut up, Shut up'_, Kurama inwardly hissed at Youko. Out loud, he soothed, "You're playing the part well, I mean."

Hiei walked to the door first, followed by Koenma and then Shizuru. Keiko hesitated not feeling comfortable enough to even move in her thong. It to be the most uncomfortable thing - how did Shizuru move like she was perfectly content in her outfit, breezing out the door. How did anyone actually wear this thing?

_'They should have to wear thongs too, just to evenly dish out the punishment.'_

"Keiko?"

She blushed heatedly, glad that Kurama couldn't hear her thoughts or anything. Imagine what he would say if he knew she'd just though he should be wearing a thong too!

She shuddered and turned toward the door, not daring to face Kurama. "Well, I guess we should catch up."

She turned to step out only to realize they weren't as far ahead of them as she'd imagined. Hiei turned toward them quite suddenly, pausing on the walkway. Shizuru continued on.

"I had my doubts about you at first, woman, but with a kinky mind like yours, you'll fit right in."

"Huh?" She responded, staring at him a moment. _'Oh no'_, she thought. _'That's right, Hiei can read thoughts, can't he? Does that mean he... about the thongs?'_

She flushed to the roots of her hair. Her mouth dropped open inelegantly as she muttered the only thing that came to mind. "Oh."

Kurama stared at her curiously wondering what was going on between the two of them.

"This is where you girls will be learning the trade..."

The bar had been used recently, Keiko noted. There were still pitchers of un named alcohol, none spilled. It was fairly well looked after.

"Well, the first thing I guess we need to do is get you girls marked." Koenma said.

Kurama turned his stare toward Keiko. She was standing nearby looking uncomfortable with the length of her skirt and how she could sit and preserve as much modesty as possible. He smiled again.

"Well, Keiko… Are you ready?" He asked, deciding it was best if he marked her while still partly in his human form. If for nothing else than to help her remain calm.

"Huh? I… I guess so, and it's not going to hurt, right?"

He shook his head.

Keiko nodded weakly and sat tensely still as Kurama moved to stand behind her. She shivered slightly as his fingers brushed the soft skin of her shoulder as they brushed back her brown hair to expose the area in which the mark was to be made.

Kurama licked his lips to moisten them as they had mysteriously gone dry. He placed a hand on each forearm, urging Keiko to lean back and rest her back against his chest in an effort to keep her calm. After he felt her relax against him, he slowly lowered his mouth to the creamy skin at the juncture of where her shoulder and neck met. Allowing Youko to emerge only slightly, Kurama's eyes morphed from their normal emerald green into a set of blazing amber. His fangs grew, and soon were the appropriate length to complete the deed.

He leaned down, pressing his lips to her flesh hesitantly. Keiko trembled, a tiny gasp escaping as he slid his mouth open, leaving a wet trail as he leaned nearer pressing his fangs against her skin. With a barely restrained growl he sunk them in her quickly, and Keiko shuddered, eyes drifting closed as her body quaked. Even, white teeth bit into a full bottom lip as she felt a wave of intense pleasure wash over her, wringing a low moan from her throat.

The rich flavor of blood passed over Youko's tongue as it seeped from the wound his fangs had caused. The salty sensation left a sting in his mouth as his lips instinctively dug deeper into the delicate cleave of her collarbone. Heat poured from his mouth, along with the energy transfer, melting into the skin of her neck and spreading across her slender shoulders.

Gently pulling his fangs from her neck, Kurama concentrated on bringing the silver kitsune under control, his fangs returning to normal human teeth in the process. Grabbing onto Keiko's shoulders, ensuring she wouldn't fall over from the side effects of the bite, he slowly guided her to a chair to sit down in.

A few minutes later, the haze that had been clouding her vision cleared, and Keiko looked around at the four sets of eyes that were watching her worriedly. Holding up her hands, she muttered a quiet, "I'm fine," before her eyes landed on Kurama. Fixing him with a glare, she prepared to yell at him when Shizuru spoke up.

"You want me to what?! In your dreams, shrimp!"

Keiko's retort faltered as she and Kurama spun around to see Shizuru glaring down at a once again smirking Hiei.

"You heard me woman, I said kneel so that I may mark you."

~*~ 

TBC....

**Buffybot76:** _Hey all! I'm back with another crazy idea for a pairing that I am fast becoming obsessed with. Yes, you read it right folks! This will be Kurama/Keiko with an added bonus of a new alternate pairing I'm trying out. Hiei/Shizuru! *crickets chirp* Umm.... yeah. Anyway, there will most likely be bits of Youko/Keiko in the future. Exciting, ne? No? *shrugs* Well, I think so anyway. Please forgive me for any OOC-ness on any character's part. I'm trying my best to keep them in character. Oh, and please don't knock the fic just cause of the pairings, give it a shot along with some honest reviews!_


	2. Chapter 2

_- Chapter 2 -_

  
  


As Koenma and Kurama watched the amusing scene between Hiei and Shizuru, Keiko was lost in thought....

  


_'How could something like a simple bite feel so...nice.'_

  


She blushed, recalling the sensations that had swept through her as Kurama had sank his fangs into her flesh. His lips caressing her skin had sent a tingling throughout her body that she had never felt before.

  


She brought her hands up to her burning cheeks, hoping no one noticed. Luckily for her, Shizuru and Hiei had erupted into an argument that only seemed to be getting louder and louder drawing everyone's attention.

  


In fact, the only person paying the slightest mind to her was Kurama, who was either amused or concerned, she couldn't tell.

  


**_'Oooh, blushing! Think she's having dirty thoughts about us?'_** Shuichi felt the tips of his ears grow warm.

  


Growling lowly in his throat, Kurama mentally shoved Youko back into the recesses of his mind. _'That will be enough out of you for now, do you understand?'_ In his head, Shuichi gave a silent cheer.

  


Kurama's eyes flashed gold as Youko attempted a take-over. The fox spirit knew he would be coming out eventually, but he didn't want to wait. Kurama clenched his teeth in concentration as Youko almost succeeded.

  


_'Stop it!'_ Shuichi chided. _'Now isn't the time, can't you see she's uncomfortable?'_

  


Youko's response was complete indifference. **_'No time like the present to break her in. The girl is going to be our slave, she might as well start learning her place.'_**

  


Shuichi frowned, instead turning his attention to Keiko.

  


"Did you just call me your bitch?! Oh, that is too far!" Shizuru was livid. _'Time to try Keiko's method of discipline...'_ she thought bitterly.

  


Keiko looked up to see Shizuru attempting to slap Hiei. The small fire demon merely chuckled as he again zipped out of reach.

  


"Humans," he laughed derisively.

  


Keiko blinked. "Really, and I thought things were bad for me." She smiled weakly turning to look at Kurama. "She's much worse off."

  


Kurama couldn't help but agree, Shizuru was not the type of person to be in such a submissive position. Although, Hiei seemed to be enjoying himself immensely, he noted.

  


"Really," Hiei commented dryly. "What are you trying to do? You're supposed to be the submissive one."

  


Shizuru snarled and attempted to tackle him once more only to find herself flat on the ground. "You little worm!"

  


Youko seemed to chuckle. **_'Oh, he's going to have lots of fun. It's almost a shame Keiko will be so submissive.'_**

  


_'I wouldn't be so hasty to judge Keiko, Youko,'_ Shuichi spoke up. _'I've seen her handle Yusuke enough to know that even though she may be timid at times, she is **not** a pushover.'_

  


Youko scoffed. **_'I'll believe that when I see it.'_**

  


_'See it? Who said you would ****__see_ anything, Youko?' Shuichi chided. _'You are going to pretend, nothing more!'_

  


A string of internal laughter followed. **_'Really now, who do you think you're speaking to? As though I would be unaware of your interest in that girl. Don't try that innocent act on me. I say you simply hand over the reigns right now and I'll handle the submissive training.'_**

  


"Kyyaaahh! You beast!"

  


They peered over to find Shizuru on her knees and Hiei in front of her, holding her back against the half wall of the bar counter.

  


"Say _please_." Hiei smirked, eyes glinting down at his captive.

  


"Go to hell," she snapped.

  


He chuckled. "I changed my mind, this human is going to be fun."

  


Kurama would have chuckled at his friend's antics, but the statement that Youko had made left him feeling antsy. _'You're wrong, Youko. I feel nothing but the deepest respect for Keiko.'_

  


A gasp drew their attention as Hiei and Shizuru once more drew their gazes. Shizuru's head was tilted off toward one side, lashes lowered halfway. Hiei had, apparently, just marked her. Kurama watched, noticing that Shizuru's eyes held the same glazed look as Keiko's had when she'd been marked.

  


Hiei leaned back, raising his mouth from her shoulder, licking his lips. He made no attempts to linger, but instead turned and went to stand by a nearby wall, leaning back and crossing his arms. It was at this point that Koenma made a statement which caused Kurama to close his eyes in apprehension and Keiko's eyes to widen in shock.

  


"Kurama, I think it'd be best if you changed into your Youko form for the rest of this training session..."

  


_'Oh no....'_ Shuichi's dismayed voice clashed with Youko's ecstatic one. **_'Oh Yes!'_** the fox spirit practically howled.

  


Keiko noticed the conflict that seemed to be going on within Kurama as she watched in awe as his familiar green eyes slowly began to bleed into smouldering amber.

  


"Uhh... wait. What do you mean change?" Keiko began nervously. "Why does he have to change? He's fine the way he is!"

  


"I'm afraid Kurama can't go on this mission in his human form, Keiko," Koenma sighed, shaking his head. "He will have to take his Youko form eventually, and it will be his Youko form that you will be working with."

  


Keiko shivered slightly, she'd never actually seen the other side of Kurama up close before. At least, not as up close and personal as this mission seemed to be calling for her to be. She glanced over at Kurama, seeing the apologetic look he was directing at her. _Why_ hadn't he told her this part?

  


Kurama saw just when Keiko's uncertainty flared up again. He went over to her, noticing the way she was looking like a scared rabbit about to scamper away.

  


"Don't worry, Keiko. Youko will make sure that you are kept safe." he assured her softly, smiling when her body seemed to lose some of it's stiffness as she relaxed.

  


**_'Of course. She'll be my slave, I'll take _****real** good care of her.'

  


_'That's ****__not_ what I meant, Youko.' Kurama closed his eyes, concentrating on shutting the stupid fox up once and for all, though he knew it was useless. Youko would be emerging within a few moments, after all, whether Kurama wanted him to or not.

  


Keiko bit her lip worriedly, but finally nodded her assent. "Alright, Kurama-kun, I'm ready."

  


Youko could hardly hold in his anticipation as he felt the bonds holding him weaken and then vanish. As the transformation swept over his body, it was as if his form had gone molten, rippling, stretching and changing into something else, something different. He was taller now, not that Kurama was short, but Youko was practically seven feel tall, with the pointed fox ears that emerged from the cascade of ice pale hair, adding another few inches. His eyes had faded to a cool silvery hue as well, and tilted at a different angle in a face with bones subtly changed. She could still see some similarities, but... There was no mistaking this creature for human.

  


The white tunic that flowed over his body did nothing to hide the wiry strength of his muscles, or the grace with which he could move. Somehow, even being still, he conveyed a feeling of wild power and swiftness that almost took her breath away. Wildness and danger. He was not a man, no mortal charmer, but a fox-spirit, dangerous and unpredictable.

  


And he was smiling at her. His eyes almost seemed to shimmer, and his teeth seemed so white, and almost sharp. Somehow, Keiko wasn't quite certain if she wanted to know what was so amusing to him.

  


Youko flexed his fingers and blinked his eyes as though amazed to be in control of a body once more. After several short moments of adjustment he turned his stare down at the girl before him. She seemed to be shaking. He towered over her, her head of unruly brown hair not even reaching his broad chest. He reached forward, touching a hand lightly upon one of her shoulders as he leaned down to face her nose to nose.

  


"Hello, Keiko." He paused. "It's good to meet you. Well, face to face anyway."

  


Keiko had never thought of herself as the fainting kind, but at that very moment she was almost certain that it was a very real possibility. She had agreed to help out on this mission as **Kurama's** concubine. The nice, mild-mannered red head. **Not** the infamous Makai thief Youko! Taking in a shuddering breath, Keiko managed to reassemble her scattered nerves as well as her manners long enough to respond, "Um... H-hello," before collapsing into the fox's arms.

  


The kitsune pulled his arms around her, turning his head up.

  


"Keiko!" Shizuru exclaimed.

  


"She's fine," Youko grinned. "I'm just a lot to handle at once."

  


He swept the girl up into his arms. Keiko, not even out five minutes, began to stir. Her eyes fluttered open and she gasped, meeting his bright gold eyes.

  


"Eh... " Her eyes drifted up to the top of his head. He could only guess that she was looking at his ears. "C-Could you put me down, please?"

  


He turned his head away, looking thoughtful. "Training starts now. No requests from slaves."

  


She gaped. "W-What?!"

  


"You'll need to obey my orders completely. When not servicing me you'll kneel at my feet. Do not speak unless spoken to. Never raise your voice. I will decide your clothing **and** how you wear it. And most importantly, before the thought even crosses your mind, you stay in my bed."

  


_'Youko...'_ Shuichi's warning voice came from the recesses of Youko's mind, but the kitsune ignored it.

  


Keiko's jaw dropped even as he continued.

  


"If you intend to stay alive and uninjured you'll listen to what I tell you. Slave markets are harsh places. You will be mine, but it is not out of the ordinary for other slave owners to attempt punishing the slaves of others if they feel offended."

  


Hiei turned a sidelong glance at the female still on the floor. "Got all that, woman?"

  


Shizuru snapped her head toward him, gritting her teeth. "Consider yourself lucky I don't want to be knocked around by some big ogre with a club, otherwise I'd kick your ass."

  


Youko grinned. "That could be fun."

  


At his words, Keiko paled and began to struggle within Youko's arms. She fought to keep her heart rate at a normal pace, but the damned fox just kept throwing her for a loop. This mission was getting more and more intense by the minute. She looked back up at him, momentarily forgetting that she was **not** supposed to do this without permission.

  


"Is all of that **really** necessa-"

  


"This is why training is necessary. You are already breaking my rules. I'll just have to punish you." With a gasp, Keiko's struggles increased tenfold. "Come now, Keiko. You are mine, remember?"

  


_'Punish her?'_ Shuichi asked, his voice tainted with horror at the mere idea.

  


Pulling out a chair, Youko sat down, flipping his little slave over so that she collapsed into his lap. Immediately she tried to straighten herself. Koenma and the others all turned their attention toward the struggling pair. Youko merely pushed her back down across his legs.

  


_'Youko, is this really necessary?'_ Shuichi questioned

.   


**_'Absolutely. Now be a good little boy, Shuichi and shut up.'_**

  


Youko sighed as he felt Shuichi receed, then turned his attention to the squirming girl lying across his lap. "It's been too long since I've gotten to punish a woman."

  


Keiko looked up in shock at him and he licked his lips. Hurriedly, she looked away and whimpered.

  


Shizuru leapt to her feet. "Don't you think this is a little too far? It looks like he's going to spank her! She's not a little girl!"

  


"Silence, woman, or you will recieve the same reprimand." Hiei snapped.

  


Shizuru threw another glare at her "master" before turning it back on the Reikai prince.

  


Koenma simply shrugged, "I am sorry, Shizuru, but this mission is too important to blow on even the most minuscule mistake. You've both got to learn to act accordingly or the mission will fail."

  


Shizuru turned around when she heard the sound of Youko's hand strking the tender flesh of Keiko's bottom, which elicited a feminie yelp from her, but only saw Youko with his hand raised, about to strike Keiko's backside once more. He was grinning as he brought down the open palm of his hand against her again.

  


Keiko squealed, then grimaced before blushing furiously as she felt his hand press against the curve of her backside, rubbing in a small circle. _'What is he -' _ Before she could complete her thought, or respond to the action, he had raised his hand, striking her once more.

  


"Be still," he ordered when she shifted. "Complete obedience, Keiko."

  


She trembled, but even as the next blow landed, she couldn't help but think that they weren't as hard, nor as painful as they probably could have been. Her struggles had caused her skirt to ride up slightly, revealing the creamy skin of her shapely backside. Koenma blushed slightly and turned away. Hiei didn't seem perturbed at all and continued to watch. Shizuru was growing more and more upset. That is, until Keiko let out a low moaning sound that sounded more rapturous than tortured.

  


Although each of Youko's blows were stinging, there was also the soothing touch that followed after each blow as he rubbed his hand over her rear. Keiko's eyes, shimmering with unreleased tears, widened as she began to feel a foreign throbbing sensation grow between her thighs at that touch. She tried to deny it, but found that she couldn't. She knew what was happening to her and it was totally and utterly embarassing. _'Oh Kami-sama, I'm getting turned on while being spanked by a demon!!'_

  


Youko paused in his spanking when his nose detected it. A certain female scent that immediately riled his senses. He stopped, pulling her up and sitting her sore bottom across his legs.

  


He leaned close. "Hmmm, like that do you?"

  


"Eh?" Keiko's misty eyes widened in surprise.

  


He tilted his chin up, purposely sniffing her and watched her face turn crimson. He grinned in response. "I guess this means we'll have to do all your punishment in private."

  


Keiko squeaked, unable to utter anything else, as she felt Youko's hand tighten promisingly on her thigh. She quickly leaped from the smirking kitsune's lap, putting as much proximity between them as possible. She reached Shizuru's side, and the older girl reached out, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

  


"You okay, kiddo?" Shizuru asked, as she noticed the still damp tear tracks streaking Keiko's cheeks.

  


Keiko nodded jerkily, but refused to meet her eyes. "It.... it's okay, Shizuru. It wasn't that bad..."

  


"Really, looked like she was enjoying it from over here."

  


Keiko turned semi-horrified eyes to the fire demon who was smirking every bit as arrogantly as Youko.

  


Shizuru threw a harsh glare at both demons before Koenma exaggeratedly cleared his throat to draw everyone's attention.

  


"I think now would be a good time to discuss some of the particulars of the assignment."

  


The distracting comment was enough to draw the attention of Shizuru and Keiko. Koenma took a seat while Keiko and Shizuru sat as well. Youko and Hiei didn't move from where they were, Youko two tables over and Hiei still leaning against the side wall.

  


"The Hiretsukan is an infamous group known to most demons, although typically only the more powerful ones. They specialize in women, most specifically, human women.

  


"To accomodate their supply needs - they have runners who round up and steal young girls from earth. A variety of females are snatched, the price tags run differently from the young school girls, to blonde colored females, or even to the gaudy women of sex clubs. There's a demand for all sorts - as long as it's human and female.

  


"Your job, specifically, is to find and bring Ankoku, their leader, back here. We've been wanting to get our hands on him for quite some time now. He is, however, very dangerous, so you'll need to be on your guard. That will be the primary responsiblity of Hiei and Kurama, you girls just need to do what they tell you. That's **very** important," he emphasized, tossing a stern look at Shizuru.

  


Shizuru rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever, toddler. Listen, I can handle my part, you just better tell tall, silver and horny over there to lay off Keiko." she muttered, thumbing in Youko's direction.

  


Her remark was met with deep chuckles from both demons. Keiko was blushing again, though she tried to hide it by bowing her head. Koenma shrugged. "I'm afraid I can't do that, Shizuru. You four must act the part convincingly. Just make sure that you don't carry the charade too far."

  


About that time, an ogre entered the room. "Koenma-sama, it's time for your evening meal, sir." the orange ogre bowed to the young prince.

  


Koenma waved him away before turning back to the others. "Well, I suggest you all get something to eat and continue with the lessons. I'm sure there are a few more things that the girls will need to know how to do." With that, the Prince swept from the room.

  
~*~   


The office of Koenma Diao was, as always, bustling with activity as mutliple ogres went in and out with stack after stack of documents and other important files. Koenma sat behind his large desk, having already changed back into his chibi form with a napkin tied securely around his neck. He had just taken a sip of his drink when George burst through the office doors.

  


"Koenma-sama!!"

  


"Pphhhttt."

  


Koenma's large eyes blinked comically as he took in Goerge's dripping wet face. "Damn it, George! How many times do I have to tell you, do not disturb me while I'm eating!"

  


"I-I'm sorry, sir, it's just that I've been handed some important information that you simply must know about." the blue ogre handed over the message he'd acquired.

  


Koenma snatched the paper up, unfolding it and reading the contents. He promptly sweatdropped as he read what was contained within the letter. "What?! Oh, this isn't good at all.... Hiei is **not** going to like this." Koenma's expression then turned thoughtful. "Unless ... we don't tell him. Hmm... GEORGE!"

  


The blue ogre was caught by surprise, having been in the process of sneaking a bite of the young prince's dinner, and leapt a few feet in the air. "WHAT!?"

  


"George, get out of that! Have you shown this to anyone else?" Koenma asked, leaping up onto his desk in order to better look the ogre in the eye.

  


"Uh, no, sir. Just you, me and the messenger who brought it, sir. But I don't believe he read it..."

  


Koenma nodded, "Oh good... In that case, forget what you've read on this piece of paper immediately, George."

  


"But, sir!"

  


"No but's, George! You heard me. Now carry on with your job and leave this particular situation to me."

  


Large, blue shoulders slumped as the ogre bowed to his boss before exited the office. Koenma turned back to his plate, though by now he'd completely lost his appetite.

  


"There's no way in the three worlds Hiei can find out about this..." the little prince moaned miserably. "There's no telling what he'd do if he were to find out Yukina's been kidnapped again."

  
~*~   


Keiko turned a glance to Shizuru after Koenma had left. "How far is too far?"

  


She shrugged. "Don't worry yourself, Keiko. Just leave it all to me."

  


Keiko turned back to see a grinning kitsune and frowned. "That doesn't seem like such a great idea..." She murmurmed, eyeing his expression. It almost seemed... lecherous.

  


"Since we're here, we might as well use the opportunity. I want a drink, bring me one."

  


Keiko blinked at the all but growled tone.

  


"Get used to it. You aren't my lover, you're my slave." He replied at the look upon her face.

  


Keiko stood, ready to obey.

  


"I will also have one." Hiei added, smirking.

  


Shizuru turned an impatient stare toward her _master_. "I suggest-"

  


"That you get it right now," Hiei cut her off.

  


Shizuru slammed her hand down onto the table, rising from her chair. "Okay, that's it. Find someone else to be your part time whore, I'm not cut out for this."

  


"Please calm yourself, Shizuru-san." She glanced toward where Youko had crossed his legs and was now leaning back quite casually. "Hiei and myself are very experienced in such markets, he is only doing what is best for you."

  


Her mouth twisted into a disgusted frown.

  


"Besides, you could use witih some discipline, I'm sure you'd enjoy it." His lips quirked into a smile that was somehow less than polite.

  


Keiko, seeing she was about to be abandoned, quickly jumped to help.

  


"Y-yeah, I'm sure it'll be okay. Just give it a shot, okay?"

  


Shizuru stood and walked around to the bar.

  


Keiko turned back. "So, if we're only to follow orders, how am I supposed to know what you want? Am I allowed to offer you things? Food and stuff, or just silently obey only what you tell me?"

  


"Only what I tell you," Youko replied.

  


Keiko nodded and followed Shizuru who had gripped a milky glass colored bottle of sake. Keiko followed her lead grabbing another bottle and cup. She headed toward Youko's table, halfway there before he decided he wanted something else.

  


"I'm hungry. Bring me something to eat also."

  


She stopped, turned back and headed toward the counter once more. There was a small half fridge on the floor under the counter. She quickly rummaged through, but found only a few sparse offerings. Gathering what she could she headed back over and laid out the minute feast before him. She popped open the bottle and poured him a glass of sake.

  


He took one sip and pushed it away. "Warm it for me."

  


Keiko sighed softly, taking the glass from the kitsune's hand and walking back to the counter. There was a convientional microwave sitting along the back wall and so she placed the drink inside before setting the timer. After the ding, Keiko returned with the newly warmed sake. She fidgeted slightly as she waited for Youko to taste it.

  


"Perfect..." Youko finally conceeded after he had drained the entire glass. "Very good, Keiko, you've done well."

  


Keiko felt a ridiculous sense of pride swell within her chest at Youko's compliment and quickly stamped it back down. About that time a menacing growl came from across the room.

  


"Feed you! Are you fucking kidding me?!"

  


Keiko's eyes widened as she watched Shizuru blow up at Hiei yet again. The fire apparition smirked as he sat calmly in a chair. "Do it, wench."

  


Shizuru was about to snap at the annoying midget again when she caught Keiko's gaze, her light brown eyes pleading with the older girl to at least **try** and cooperate. Taking a deep breath, Shizuru composed herself before turning back with a forced smile on her face.

  


"Yes, master." she barely mananged to say without grimacing.

  


Picking a grape from the bunch that sat on the table, Shizuru bent forward and placed the tiny piece of fruit into Hiei's open mouth. Once she'd completed her task, she snatched her hand back quickly, as if afraid that the demon would bite it off. When behind them the door slammed open with a loud clatter, Keiko and Shizuru both jumped in fright.

  


"Good day, ladies, how are things going? Why are you standing up? You should be kneeling at the feet of your masters, aren't you teaching them?" Koenma asked, raising one skeptical eyebrow.

  


Shizuru turned toward the young prince, a disdainful twist on her lips, about to lay into him about barging in when Youko cut her off.

  


"We're getting to it. Why have all the fun at once?" The pale haired kitsune asked, turning his playful gaze toward the short brown haired girl.

  


Keiko gulped, and thought, 'Might as well get this over with...' Walking over to where Youko sat, she sank as gracefully to the floor at the kitsune's feet as her clothing would allow. Youko immediately placed his hand on her head, startling Keiko as he began to stroke her hair gently.

  


Hiei looked meaningfully at Shizuru, who rolled her eyes and walked over, flopping **not** so gracefully at the fire demon's feet.

  


"Now see? That wasn't so hard, now was it?" Koenma smiled. "It's a good thing too, because I've come to tell you that the mission has been moved up. You leave tomorrow, so it would be your best bet if you all stayed here tonight and get a fresh start in the morning."

  


"T-Tomorrow?" Keiko gasped. "So soon? But I'm... I'm not ready!"

  


"Can't be helped," Koenma replied primly.

  


_'Comfort her!'_ Shuichi's voice emerged. _'She's obviously worried, this has to be scary for her.'_

  


Youko repressed a yawn. "Don't worry about it. Hiei and I will be doing all the work. Your job is an easy one."

  


Keiko looked up, unable to tell what to make of the response. Youko's amber eyes gave her a warning look, causing Keiko to realize her mistake. Immediately she lowered her eyes from the silver kitsune. Was he going to _punish_ her again? A blush quickly spread over her cheeks as she recalled her reaction to the last time he had.. Would she react that way every time? The blush deepened. She did **not** want to be punished again anytime soon! Holding her breath, Keiko waited silently to see what Youko would do for her inadvertant disobedience. She released it in silent relief when she felt the kitsune's hand return to her head, continuing to stroke it gently.

  


"Yeah, don't worry, Keiko. Just think of the greater good, we're saving innocent girls from big, ugly demon hordes intent upon raping them."

  


Keiko glanced toward Shizuru, meeting her gaze. "Ah... right."

  


"Yes, well, go eat and get some rest. Tomorrow will be a long day." Koenma didn't stay any longer, instead opting to head out to make some progress over the monsterous stack of paperwork building up again on his desk.

  


Keiko reminded herself to keep her head down as she waited for Youko to say something.

  


"Well, I suppose that only leaves dinner and bed," Youko commented, pulling himself to his feet. "Come along, Keiko."

  


She stood hesitantly.

  


_Something's wrong...._ Shuichi warned and Youko turned back to Keiko.

  


"Problem?"

  


"When you say _bed_... " she trailed off uneasily.

  


Youko grinned. "With me, of course."

  


Keiko swallowed hard, a slight blush tinting her cheeks. If things went like this, **not** staring at Youko wouldn't be difficult.

  


Shizuru looked toward Hiei and he looked toward her. His lips quirked into a grin and she frowned.

  


"You might be my _master_ but you better keep your hands to yourself, got it?"

  
~*~   


Keiko walked down the hall behind Youko as they made their way to their room, remembering to keep her head bowed down as she'd been taught. She groaned softly when she realized that at that angle, her gaze was naturally directed toward the lower half of the kitsune's body. His backside to be precise. And what a backside it was. Shaped perfectly against the slimness of his hips, it looked to be very nicely toned. And the tails... five of them, she counted. They all sprouted from the base of his back in the location of his tail bone, and swayed behind him in rhythm with his long hair as he stepped. Keiko felt her face beginning to burn with a heated blush yet again, as she felt the abrupt urge to reach out and stroke one, if not all, of the long fluffy appendages.

  


_'Maybe he'll let me touch them later'_, she thought before turning her mind and eyes away from the kitsune's frame. _'Bad thoughts, Keiko.'_

  


When he paused, sliding open the door to their room, Keiko too stopped. What did she do?

  


"Go in." Youko ordered.

  


She did so with some uncertainty. This was going to be **so** hard. Did she have to wait for instructions on everything? What was she going to sleep in? Was he going to give her clothes? Should she stand there and wait for him to give her orders to change? What if that perverted kitsune ordered her to change right there in the middle of the room?

  


"You can wear this," he tossed a garment over his shoulder and it landed haphazardly on her shoulder before slumping to the floor and she had to reach down for it. She examined the garment a moment before determining what it was: _a shirt_.

  


A simple white, waist length shirt. _'This is it?'_

  


She turned toward him, eyes wide, only to find him grinning.

  


"It should fit perfectly." he smirked.

  


"Oh..." she said uncertainly as she rubbed the material between her fingers. The soft satiny feel of the material caused Keiko's mind to wander once again to the kitsune's tails. Did they feel as soft as the material of the nightshirt? She glanced toward the futon against the far wall of the room and gulped. Would she be finding out first hand once she crawled into bed? Averting her gaze from the futon and her mind from such thoughts, Keiko scanned the room in search of something to go behind in order to change. Her heart made a downwards dive to somewhere around her feet when she realized that, no, there was nothing that she **could** go behind.

  


"Umm..." she hesitated, not wanting to say anything for fear of punishment, but not knowing how to relay her predicament. After a few moments, Youko resolved the problem for her.

  


"Well, what are you waiting for?" The amusement in the kitsune's voice was tangible. He really expected her to change right there!

  


It wasn't as though she were really wearing all that much to begin with, and in reality, she might feel a little more covered in the t-shirt. With the notable exception that she was wearing a thong underneath, so she might be more exposed after all.

  


Was he going to make her wear this when they were working too?

  


He shed the tunic and propped himself up on the futon leaning on one elbow as though awaiting a show. He was clearly not going to turn away.

  


Taking the shirt she pulled it up over her head and kept her arms still inside while she worked off the tight leather around her breasts. _'Whoever picked this out'_, she thought bitterly, _'didn't have any idea the hell it was to wear it!'_ Finally working it off, she found she couldn't shimmy it over her hips and growled.

  


Youko, avidly watching, began to chuckle at her plight, but didn't outwardly comment. She worked the leather back up and, with some straining, over her shoulders. She stuffed her arms through the shirt holes and slipped the garment out from underneath her shirt and over her neck.

  


_'Yeah'_, she thought, dropping it to the floor, and pausing.

  


"So, what are you waiting for? Off with the rest of it."

  


Keiko was about to look up at Youko in shock at his comment, but remembered just in time that it was forbidden, and so instead she looked away. He thought she would actually be able to sleep in this little skirt? She wasn't all that happy about the thong, but since her _master_ ordered it, she had to strip down to it.

  


Gripping the zipper on her right side, she began pulling it down. The progress was unintentionally slow, unknowingly giving Youko a bit of a show. Once she was out of the mini skirt, she undid the clasps holding her stockings up and slowly slid them down her legs, her hands keeping contact with her skin almost the entire time.

  


"Hurry up and finish, and then come to bed," Youko said with a grunt, not wanting the strip tease to continue until he was beyond his limits. Which Keiko happened to be pushing.

  


Keiko hurriedly got out of the garter belt and went over to the futon, crawling under the sheet that Youko held up for her.

  


Facing away, she lay on her side, intending to remain as far away from him as she could get and still stay on the futon. Her plan was thwarted, however, when Youko's strong arms reached out, encircling her waist as he drew her back flush against his chest in a spooning position. Her eyes grew wide in shock, and she emitted a small squeak, as she felt something long and hard prod the small of her back.

  


_'Oh, please don't let that be what I think it is,'_ she silently chanted.

  


She shivered when Youko spoke, his voice causing his chest to rumble slightly against her shoulder blades. "Now... isn't this comfortable, Keiko?"

  


He expected her to reply, but she found herself incapable of forming words. So instead, she finally nodded stiffly and tried to relax into the kitsune's arms. She was hesitant, but held firm to her trust in Kurama's assurances that Youko wouldn't hurt her.

  


_'Get yourself under control for once! This is Keiko!'_ Shuichi's voice drilled into his head. That other half of him was like the conscience he didn't want or need but couldn't kill.

  


**_'Go to sleep,'_** Youko replied. **_'I told you I'll take care of Keiko.'_**

  


_'That is ****__not_ taking care of her. That's terrorizing her!'

  


**_'Terrorizing?'_** Youko broke into a fit of mental laughter. **_'If you think this is terrfying just wait until I get the girl to market. Then you'll really love it.'_**

  


Shuichi was momentarily silent. _'Youko!'_

  


**_'Damn it, she fell asleep.'_** Youko thought with a frown staring at the girl in front of him. How could she fall alleep so easily?

  


Shuichi seemed relieved, but Youko shifted, rubbing up against her and her eyes flew open once more.

  


**_'Oh, she was pretending! What a cute little thing...'_**

  


_'Youko, just keep it in your pants, would you,'_ Shuichi told him more than asked.

  


**_'Ah, but if I'm not wearing any pants,'_** the kitsune chuckled. Blocking out any more thoughts from his counterpart, Youko turned his attention to the girl pretending to be asleep in his arms.

  


He was quite shocked when she started moving around some, obviously trying to get comfortable in his arms. Unfortunately, her movements were causing him to become even more uncomfortable.

  


Growling at her a bit, he tightened his arms about her, holding her still. Then, firmly pressing his hips into her backside, he ground out between clenched teeth, "See what you do to me? Now stop moving or you'll have to do something to solve my little problem. Understand?"

  


Keiko instantly stilled, gasping at the action and nodded furiously as a flabbergasted look etched across her face. Oh, why hadn't she realized how movement like that would affect him? _'Come on, Keiko. You're smarter than this! Think about the consequences next time!'_ Her silent berating of herself was cut short as she felt something warm and fluffy wind its way, or rather 'their' way around her hips and legs. _'It's his tails...'_ she realized. Her earlier musings of what they felt like were answered as her eyes fluttering closed at the delightful sensation of downy soft fur caressing her bare skin. _'Oh... that feels nice...'_ The random thought emerged, taking Keiko completely offguard.

  


The soft fluttery feeling of his fur was soothing. Ah, and there was more than one too... Youko pressed his chest closer to her back and slid his leg forward, pushing her top leg forward so that it wasn't lying on the other. Keiko softly sighed as a fluffy appendage began to caress the inside of her thigh, sliding down toward her knee and up again. Oooh, she felt like melting.

  


Youko smirked. She wasn't resisting his advances, though he could still hear his other half clammering for his attention. Finally becoming sick of all the noise, he turned part of his attention to his other half long enough to hear his complaint that the human had promised they would both protect her.

  


**_'I'm not hurting her in any way, and she isn't protesting. So just shut up.'_**

  


Blocking Shuichi from his mind once again, Youko focused back on the girl in his arms. And his tails. Though his arms stayed stationary around her, his tails were still working their way between her thighs. He nearly groaned out loud when his sensitive nose once again picked up the scent of her arousal.

  


Deciding to take a chance, he slid his hand down to meet his tails that were now nestled nicly between the juncture of her thighs. Slowly, he slipped his fingers under the edge of her thong, giving Keiko plenty of time to protest before he continued.

  


_'Unless,'_ the kitsune pondered, _'She is just acting her part as my concubine.'_

  


Youko decided he wanted to know and so withdrew his hand, slowly turning the girl in his arms so that she lay on her back, giving him a clear view of her face. She had her eyes closed tight, he noticed, and her lips were pursed in a tight line of determination. Youko sighed. She was aroused by his touch, but it was obviously an involuntary response.

  


"Keiko, look at me." he ordered, using a gentle, soothing tone.

  


Keiko's eyelids unclenched and fluttered open, revealing confused brown eyes which immediately fixed on him. Propping himself up on an elbow, Youko looked down at her for a moment before asking his question.

  


"Are you allowing me to do this because you want it, or because you think you'll be punished if you don't?" She looked away as a blush emerged, but he caught her chin with gentle fingers and turned her gaze back to him. "Answer me, Keiko. Please." He added the last word in order to show her that, for the moment, the charade was dropped.

  


Keiko stared a moment longer at him before she shrugged, deciding an honest answer would most likely be best. "A little of both.... i think."

  


He repressed a growl of irritation. Given her answer, he wondered at how she was so much like the 'honesty' policy that Shuichi held so dearly. He rolled away from her, disappointed. He might not have given up so quickly on changing her mind had Shuichi, who had finally wormed his way back into his thoughts, not started pestering him again.

  


Turning his back to her, he muttered, "Get some sleep. We have a long day and you'll need your rest."

  


**_'Oh, would she ever'_**, he thought, imagining the rounds of grimacing and wincing she was going to be doing when she saw a slave market up close and personal.

  


Keiko was a bit shocked that Youko had given up on her so easily. Shocked and extremely confused. He obviously wanted to, and her body didn't mind, even if her mind didn't like the idea of being easy. Instead of worrying about it, she rolled over so that she faced Youko's back and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head against his back, in hopes of comforting her kitsune companion. The oddness of the thought hit her as she began drifting off to sleep, but her sleep deprived brain wouldn't allow her to think on it.

  


Smirking, Youko allowed his tails to slide over Keiko's legs so they wouldn't get chilled with just the lone sheet covering them.

  
~*~   


Hiei felt his temper flaring as the nightshirt once again came flying through the air in his direction. This time he took precautions and stepped quickly to the left, allowing the simple garment to land on the floor. He felt he had been more than generous when he had given it to the human wench so that she would not be without hybernating apparel. Obviously he had missed something because she didn't seem to **want** it. The first time he had threw it at her, ordering her to put it on, she had simply held it , looking at it with a critical eye long enough to judge what it was before flinging it back in his face.

  


He had growled lowly, removing the garment from where it had landed on his head, and balled the fabric up in his fist.

  


"I said dress in this, wench." He had ordered again, launching the shirt back at her.

  


She'd barely caught it before she flung it right back at him again. He'd glared at her and threw it a final time. She had of course, returned the favor and now the shirt lay crumpled on the floor to his right. He eyed Shizuru with contempt before pointing at the discarded garment.

  


"Put this on now, or I will be forced to dress you myself." he warned.

  


Shizuru crossed her arms defiantly. "I dare you."

  


He stared and started to move when he abruptly stopped. A slow, cocky grin spread over his lips as he turned a silently victorious glance at her. "You have two choices. You sleep in the shirt, or you sleep in nothing."

  


She stood there, silently eyeing him and then the discarded shirt as though weighing the possiblity that he'd actually disrobe her. Perhaps not _disrobe_ she thought, torn was more the word that came to mind. If he did tear them off, an uneasy possiblity, what would she wear tomorrow? She could see him now, smirking and telling her she should've obeyed his orders, then she wouldn't have to walk around naked and how it was all her own fault.

  


Shizuru wanted to hit the short fire demon, but knew he would _punish_ her for it if she did. Holding out her hand, she barely growled out the word _fine_. She quickly caught the shirt as it was thrown back her way. She glared at him, hoping he would get the message that she wanted him to at least turn around, but it looked like she wouldn't be getting any privacy. Her thoughts were confirmed when Hiei spoke.

  


"If you expect me to leave, you're sorely mistaken. Now I suggest you change."

  


With a growl, Shizuru made to turn around to gain a sembalance of privacy, but she stopped at her _master's_ words.

  


"Who told you that you could turn around? I certainly didn't."

  


Shizuru felt an eyebrow twitch in aggitated annoyance. _'Why that little hentai,'_ she thought fiercely.

  


Turning so that she was fully facing Hiei, Shizuru dropped the night shirt onto the floor before her as she began to undress. She had a little less trouble than Keiko did, and unlike her friend, she removed the pitiful excuse for clothing as quickly as possible. Starting with the top, she stripped it off before tackling the zippers on the skirt. She _finally_ got around to the garters and undergarments and soon she was completely nude. Not even once did she look in the fire demon's direction, she leaned down and retrieved the shirt, pulling it over first her head, then her body. She noted with a good deal of annoyance that the shirt barely brushed the top of her thighs.

  


_'Humans are humans,'_ he thought, as he watched her undress. She didn't dare look at him, a fact that brought him a strange amount of pleasure. They were all the same - from one to the next, only varying by gender. Such a simple fact should've been easy to digest and move on, but his gaze lingered as she pulled off what little clothes she had on and dropped them nonchalantly to the floor.

  


He wasn't willing, at least by admission, to concede that Youko's interest in humans wasn't as debasing as he'd originally thought. He caught a stray thought here and there, mostly what he thought of as _inane human chatter_. Some remark about being perverted did get his attention as he swept his gaze up her t-shirt clad body.

  


"Starting tomorrow, wench, I will no longer allow you the luxury of the shirt." he informed her.

  


She motioned at him, about to lay into a verbal thrashing when she noted the shirt rode up quite high so she hastily dropped it.

  


"Wench, you do realize this will go much more smoothly if you do not fight me on every single matter? And if you do continue to fight me, you will blow our cover," Hiei told Shizuru as he moved towards their shared futon.

  


Laying down and getting underneath the sheet, Hiei motioned for her to join him. "And before you even begin to argue, if you do not sleep next to me, you will sleep at the foot of the bed like a dog."

  


Sighing in resignation as she walked to the futon, Shizuru crawled under the sheet and laid down, almost robotically.

  


"How would you like me to lie," she asked.

  


"Roll over on your side," he told her. He watched as she began to roll towards him, but stopped her. "No, your other side."

  


Shizuru hesitantly rolled to her side with her back facing him. She stiffened quite a bit when he moved up behind her and wrapped one arm around her waist, the other moving under her head to act as a pillow. She was quite surprised by his behavior, thinking that it could almost be called nice, or kind.

  


"Don't get used to this. Like the shirt, this is a one time thing," Hiei told her, his voice dashing all thoughts of kind actions from the fire demon.

  


Shizuru rolled her eyes and sighed in resignation. But as she drifted off, the idle thought of how _good_ it felt being held against him, arose in her mind... and then she slept.

  
~*~   


Sometime during the night, Youko was awakened by a familiar tug at his mind. **_'What is it, Shuichi?'_** the kitsune asked his human half.

  


_'I wanted to thank you for not pressuring Keiko earlier.'_ Shuichi said softly within his mind, though there was no need to keep quiet.

  


Keiko, who was still curled up against Youko's back, murmured something unintelligible as she snuggled closer. Youko heard Shuichi's inner sigh and smirked. He knew how his human counterpart felt about Keiko, and to tell the truth, he could almost understand why he had taken a liking to her. She was sweet, innocent and definitely pleasing to the eye. It had taken a good bit of control to not just simply take her before. There was something more than that, though, that drew both halves of Kurama to her. Youko sighed, knowing that the human half would not take the steps needed to claim her. At least, not without the proper motivation. Maybe he just needed a sample of what he would be missing?

  


**_'We've got a big day ahead of us. Go to sleep, Shuichi.'_** Youko said, smirking as he felt the other's presence dull in his mind as his human side conceded. He waited a few moments more, and then, when he was sure he wouldn't be detected, the kitsune allowed his control of the body to slip. The transformation went quickly as Youko allowed the red-haired form of Kurama to emerge. Oh, he couldn't wait to feel the human side's surprise when he woke up the next morning.

  
~*~   


Rays of sunlight streaming through an open side window awakened Kurama. There was a warm body next to his. He blinked. What was he doing out here? When he had fallen asleep, his kitsune counterpart had been in complete control of their shared body. As his mind went over the possible reasons, the warm body next to him shifted, drawing his attention to Keiko as she slept. Her face gave off a look of innocence as she slept and Kurama felt his heart soften in the familiar way it had recently begun to whenever he looked at her. He noticed how her sienna hued hair was fanned out against the pillow that they shared, entwined almost intimately with his own scarlet locks.

  


Deciding it was best if they were not so close when she woke up, Kurama moved to slip away, only to find he couldn't. Keiko's arms were around his waist and his around her, and, to his misfortune, one was beneath her. Should he wake her? She was so soft and warm, staying in bed seemed like a much more pleasant way to spend the day.

  


The red head smiled as Keiko snuggled against him, letting out a small contented sound that matched exactly how Kurama was feeling at that moment. He gazed down at her with such tenderness filling his eyes, that they seemed to shimmer vibrantly. He wondered briefly what had possessed Youko to allow him back in control of their body before his attention wandered back to the girl who was now stirring at his side. He watched as Keiko opened her eyes, blinking slowly as sleep left her.

  


Her lips looked soft and pink, and he could see just a hint of her teeth as she looked at him, a slight gasp of what he assumed was surprise. He found himself staring at her lips, and then, somehow, without knowledge that he was doing so, his lip were descending upon hers, and they were so soft...

  


Keiko tensed slightly beneath him as she felt Kurama's lips make delicate contact with her own. Feeling her tenseness, Kurama traced his fingers gently down her cheek before moving behind to cup the base of her head. Massaging it soothingly, he heard her sigh softly before her body relaxed once more. Keiko's mind, still in a post-sleep haze, could only register the fact that it wasn't the kitsune spirit Youko who was kissing her so tenderly. It was surprisingly, Shuichi, the human half, who was gifting her with such tender attentions. The half of him that she was more familiar with. More comfortable with. Perhaps that alone was the reason that Keiko did what she did next.

  


With a low, meaningful moan, Keiko surrendered to Kurama's sweet kiss. Her lips parted, allowing the tongue which begged for entrance, an open welcome. Both became lost in one another, caught up in the perfectness of the moment. And yet, somehow, both knew exactly where they belonged.

  


Together.

  


Kurama leaned, pressing his weight more firmly on one side as he leaned back from her, eyes glazed. Within, he felt Youko's characteristic stirrings, and knew, despite his quietness, the kitsune was avidly aware of the scene before him. He shifted slightly from his uncomfortable position, half leaning over the girl in the bed with him. Keiko merely watched in silent complacency, eyes half lowered in a dazed sort of fashion. He felt his lips begin to quirk into a gentle smile when from behind them the door slammed open, banging back against the wall.

  


"What **is** the meaning of this?!"

  


Both nearly leapt in fright as Koenma entered, flanked by two horned assistants.

  


"You're going to be late!" He snapped, voice prim. "We don't have- You can't go like that!"

  


"You have ten minutes to get dressed and be out in the bar. And Kurama, I want you out there with Youko in control," Koenma ordered, leaving the room almost as quickly as he had entered.

  


Kurama glanced at Keiko, quite embarrassed, then he scrambled away, going to the water basin to wash his face, leaving a very confuse Keiko still lying on the futon. He took a few minutes to gather his thoughts, also giving Keiko time to get dressed.

  


Keiko, seizing the oppurtunity while she had it, dashed from the futon with the sheet wrapped around her body and grabbed her clothes. Keeping an eye on Kurama, she dropped the sheet and quickly put her garter belt and thigh highs back on. Grabbing her mini skirt from the pile of clothes, she wrapped it around her waist and zipped it up. Finally, regretfully, she stripped off her t-shirt she had slept in and quickly replaced it with the halter top.

  


Once fully dressed, Keiko found herself reluctant to look back at Kurama. Finally drawing enough courage to do so, she turned to find that the red head was gone and Youko was once again in his place. Immediately, Keiko lowered her gaze from her pseudo-master, keeping her eyes trained on the floor. Youko's deep chuckled caused her to startle, and much to her dismay, she felt herself growing warm in forbidden places. What was wrong with her? Getting turned on while being spanked? Letting a demon caress her intimately. Allowing Kurama to **kiss** her? This mission was wreaking havoc on her mind, not to mention her image!

  


"Come, Keiko. I fear that Koenma might throw a tantrum if we don't arrive soon." Youko's smooth voice commanded, breaking through her mental ranting.

  


"Yes, master." Keiko answered automatically, then winced as Youko chuckled again.

  


That had come out almost too easily... as if it were natural for her to call him that. _'Oh boy, this isn't a good sign.'_ Keiko thought. Her head remained down, as much to hide the blushed state of her cheeks than anything else, as she followed the kitsune from the room.

  
~*~   


Shizuru woke up first, her sleep clouded mind confused by the extra weight laying on her chest, making it somewhat difficult for her to breathe. She didn't want to open her eyes, knowing that when she did, she would be greeted with the bright sunlight that now shined on her closed eyes lids.

  


She felt around where she slept in hopes of gaining information without having to open her eyes yet. She knew she now lay on her back, sprawled out on the futon her and Hiei had shared the previous night, and both her hands reached the edges of the futon without obstruction, meaning her bed partner was no longer laying next to her. And she felt something hard nestled between her thighs, pressed intimately against her womanhood. It felt almost like a rod was pressed lengthwise against her.

  


Deciding to think more on it later, Shizuru shifted her attention to the odd weight on her chest. In fact, if it had been a person, she would have said they were using her breasts as a pillow. Finally confused beyond belief, Shizuru decided to open her eyes, to hell with the sunlight. Once her eyes were open and adjusted to the sunlight, she looked down and nearly screamed.

  


Hiei was laying on top of her, and he was, in fact, using her breasts for a pillow. Not only that. His lower body was nestled between her thighs, quite how a lover might rest after a round of love making.

  


Her whole body tensed at the intimate contact, although she couldn't deny that there was also a slight shiver that ran through her at the same time. The realization hit that, basically, there was no way to get out of the position they were in other than to wake the sleeping fire demon up and get him to move off of her. She could try to push him off, but thought better of it. There was no telling what Hiei would do if startled awake. So instead, Shizuru settled on lying there, albeit impatiently, until she felt the dark haired demon stir.

  


Eyes fluttering open, Hiei blinked a few times to focus them, noting that he was lying most comfortably. His head was resting on pillows that nearly cradled him and although he was used to sleeping in trees, the softness below him felt gloriously warm and welcoming. Though he would never admit this aloud. He shifted slightly, groaning as the evidence of his morning curse ground against something soft, sending sparks of heat through his viens. There came a slight gasp from the vicinity of his 'pillow' and Hiei tensed suddenly before raising his head. It was then that he became aware of the situation that he had somehow come to be in.

  


He wasn't lying on the softest futon ever made, no. He was, in fact, lying atop the human wench whom he had the pleasure of calling his slave. Bringing his red-eyed stare up, Hiei met Shizuru's brown eyes. There was silence between them for the longest moment, and then he watched with a frown as an amused smirk creeped onto her lips. A frown which was immediately followed by a glare when she finally spoke.

  


"Was it good for you?"

  


Before either of them could move or say another word, the door to their room was flung open and Koenma stormed in, two ogres flanking him.

  


"What is it with you four this morning," Koenma complained as he entered the room, stopping dead in his tracks as his eyes landed on the futon.

  


Blushing at the couple as they lay in a compromising position, he slowly began to back out of the room. "Maybe I should give you two a minute," he said just before closing the door.

  


As soon as the demi-death-god had closed the door, Hiei turned back to the woman he still lay on, a growl spilling forth from his lips. "How dare you try to take advantage of me in the middle of the night," he accused.

  


Shizuru snorted. "In case you forgot, **you're** the one that's on top, you little perverted demon," she responded, her voice rising a bit towards the end. "Now get off me, before you lose something vital," she warned.

  


Still growling, Hiei rolled off of Shizuru and strode over to the wash basin, muttering obscenities about wenches under his breath while Shizuru moved to get dressed.

  
~*~   


TBC... 


	3. Chapter 3

_- Chapter 3 -_

_Still growling, Hiei rolled off of Shizuru and strode over to the washbasin, muttering obscenities about wenches under his breath while Shizuru moved to get dressed._

It was the human rush hour. Salarymen were returning home from work, women and bachelors from stores, hoping to grab a last minute bargain for eel. Koenma nodded to himself. All was as it should be. With so many humans crowding the streets, no one would notice a tall, white haired fox demon, petite fire demon, and two girls in ... questionable attire. The group ducked silently into an alleyway, and suddenly, the portal was visible.

At the sight of the weird pulsing blue light, Keiko stopped short, her eyes flicking questionably towards Youko. With a quick nod from him, she resumed walking, her stop barely noticeable to the others walking with them. Koenma stopped in front of the blue light and looked at Hiei and Shizuru, then at Youko and Keiko.

"I want to remind you all of how important this mission is. Girls, remember to do everything and anything that they tell you to, or you will blow your cover. And you two," he said, pointing to Hiei and Youko, "don't do anything to draw attention to yourselves," Koenma warned.

They all nodded, Keiko and Shizuru looking at Koenma through their bangs, their heads still lowered in a demure fashion.

"And don't forget these," Koenma added, holding out two leashes for Youko and Hiei.

The demons took the leashes and latched them onto the collars that were around their 'slaves' necks.

"I wish you all luck," Koenma said, disappearing before their eyes, presumably to go back to his office in the spirit world.

They stepped into the light, and everything faded. The group took measured steps, and despite not being able to see anything but blue, the demons tracked their course with keen smell. For once, there was no bickering between Hiei and Shizuru. Keiko supposed they were nervous, less nervous, perhaps, then herself, who clutched Youko's arm with fear.

_'He won't let any harm come to me',_ she thought, intuitively knowing its truth.

When they finally reached the end of the portal, the four exited and found themselves in the extensive surroundings of the Makai. Keiko turned around in a quick circle where she stood next to Youko, taking in her surroundings, and nearly gasped when she saw what looked like a small city made entirely out of tents. Quickly remembering her training, she faced the same direction as Youko and lowered her head once more.

"It seems they are bringing in another group of slaves," Hiei commented, glancing off in the distance at a large group of humans and demons headed their way.

"Hm, it seems they are," Youko agreed. Turning to Keiko, Youko placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. "I promise that if you do exactly as I tell you, and remember your training, nothing bad will happen to you," he told her, a bit of his human side showing through in his concern for her.

She felt the urge to look up into Kurama- no, Youko's eyes to thank him, but unpermitted to do so, she instead nodded as eloquently as possible. From behind Keiko, Shizuru was experiencing no similar tender feelings, except relief, fastly bordering into tenseness. It didn't help that Hiei was ignoring her.

_'He suddenly seems to find those other new slaves more worthy of his attention than me.'_ And oddly enough, the thought was a little more resentful than she would have liked.

As they came closer to the tents, the girls could hear the rumbling voices of at least a thousand male demons. There were few female demons in sight, Shizuru noted. Not surprising. A thousand or so male demons, and about as many women. But the women did not- and could not talk. The lack of high vocal tone in the crowd, made her feel uneasy.

It was then that a large demon nearby noticed them, the grotesque looking creature approached, its slitted eye positioned in the middle of it's leathery forehead, taking in the sight of Keiko and Shizuru with a disturbing observation. A terrified shiver ran through Keiko's body as she felt the demon's eye linger on her, but it was instantly dispelled when Youko's warm hand came to rest possessively on her shoulder. The demon seemed to acknowledge Youko's claiming gesture and immediately turned his attention to the silver kitsune.

"State your business, fox." The voice was rough, almost an undecipherable growl.

Keiko couldn't tell anything about Youko's demeanor by looking at his feet, but he didn't seem tense. At least, she realized, she was hoping he wasn't.

"We, Hiei and myself, merely wish to join in on the fun. We've got these two, bought from another market, but we weren't satisfied. Too disobedient. I heard good things about this place, so we wanted to check it out." He replied smoothly.

"Yes," Hiei spoke up, a grin quirking up his lips. "You can only abide by one human for so long. Once there is no room for new scars, the fun is gone."

The comment seemed to strike a chord of humor within the tall, beastly guard.

"Heh," he nodded. The neckless creature's entire torso shifted with the movement. "You getting rid of these, or looking for additions?"

"Additions," Youko spoke up. "This one is somewhat new, but a bit boring. I was hoping to get her a playmate."

A deep round of laughter followed the comment. "You should go to Bakura's, he's got some nice girls. Young, like yours." The nameless beast extended an arm, pointing down the lane.

Youko nodded, then giving Keiko's shoulder another squeeze, let his hand fall to his side as he walked ahead, Keiko immediately falling into step behind. Hiei followed his kitsune friend, flanked by Shizuru. They followed the lane the demon had indicated and soon found themselves approaching a tent which was surrounded by a multitude of human women, their hands bound and staked to a peg in the hard ground. Youko and Hiei entered the tent first, Keiko and Shizuru right behind them, when they were stopped by a voice.

"Where do you think you're going," the voice asked.

Youko and Hiei turned towards the shadows of the tent that the question had come from and watched as what looked like a young man with short, spiky silver hair stepped from the shadows. His dark brown eyes shined with malice as he warily watched the intruders in his tent.

When he received no answer, he repeated his question.

"So sorry for my rudeness," Youko quipped, bowing slightly at the waist. "My name is Youko and my friend here is Hiei. We're interested in purchasing a few new slaves," Youko explained.

"So what brings you to my tent," he asked, cocking his head to the side a bit, as if listening for any disturbances outside.

"The guard at the edge of the encampment directed us here. He said you had some girls that would compliment the ones we have with us," Youko explained.

The young man eyed Hiei with what could only be called a curious hatred. "Why doesn't your friend talk. Is he unable, or just ignorant," he asked Youko.

At that, Hiei smirked. "I can. I was just contemplating the girls outside. Now tell me, are you this Bakura that we look for, or should we go elsewhere," Hiei asked, crossing his arms over his chest and looking smug.

"I am Bakura. Were there any girls in particular that caught your eye," he asked, a slight smile coming to his face at the prospect of making a sale. And by the looks of these two, they could probably afford some of his best stock. He just hoped his men came through and brought him something really worthwhile.

"Actually, no. None did. That's the thing. We were told you had the best here, and there was nothing of interest there," Hiei replied.

"I must agree with my friend. We only purchase the highest quality slaves, and it looks as if our trip here was a waste," Youko spoke up, hoping this Bakura character would say something that would oblige them to stay for a while.

"You should stick around. We get new girls in here all the time. Maybe something that catches your eye will come in soon," Bakura replied, hoping they would remain in the camp and he could make a sale or two.

"Perhaps, but we have no where to stay. I suppose it would be a shame for you to lose such good customers due to a lack in quality in your stock," Hiei said, smirking when the slight look of shock crossed Bakura's face.

"Perhaps I could introduce you to Ankoku. He is the leader of the Hiretsukan," Bakura said, hoping to impress the two customers by knowing the leader of his group.

"Doesn't impress me, but if it'll get us a place to stay for a while," Hiei said with a shrug of his shoulders, trailing off, leaving his question open for the salesman to take it as he liked.

Bakura paused. "You came to the market for one day?"

"It was a spur of the moment trip. My mornings just aren't the same, not as interesting as they could be." Youko replied. "You can only do so much." He sighed regretfully and turned to Hiei.

The smaller fire demon shrugged.

"Well, this seems a bit wasteful. I heard from a friend of mine there was another market, although he said the quality was iffy. Want to give that a try?"

Hiei paused in consideration as Bakura tensed.

"No, no. There's no need for that. You were, after all, recommended to me. I can see you have a place to stay. It is a simple matter. I will arrange it for you, while I do perhaps you would like to meet some of my current girls?"

"Very well," Hiei agreed. "This one is too chatty for my tastes anyway."

The female behind him stiffened, but thankfully remained quiet.

Youko nodded also and followed a much-relieved Bakura toward the back flaps of the tent. They stepped out into semi-arid air, headed off to another tent, one much larger. Keiko and Shizuru followed after, the leashes dangling from their necks.

Youko recoiled at the scent as they stepped into a large, beige colored tent. Women of every kind and shape lined the central pathway. Wooden poles around four feet were pounded into the ground. Ropes held the small female wrists behind their backs, pulled taut.

Hair was mangled and bodies bled. Some of the women looked like girls, small faces and bodies.

"Brutal, don't you have anything… clean?" Youko replied, turning his nose up at the selection.

Bakura chuckled. "Washing is all part of the fun."

"True," Youko smirked in response, "But still, how am I to inspect the merchandise when it is caked in such filth?"

Bakura frowned in irritation. "Fine, I'll have a guard take them to the hot spring on the east side of camp and bathe them. They should be ready for your inspection come morning."

Youko turned to arch an eyebrow at Hiei as if to say, "What do you say, Hiei? Would that be agreeable?"

The fire demon nodded and so Youko turned back toward Bakura. "That will be fine, we shall return on the morrow then."

With that, Youko caught hold of Keiko's leash as Hiei did the same with Shizuru's. They turned, exiting the tent, once again entering out into the large camp. They walked through the center, Youko halting them when he spied a lunch tent set up to their left. The fox then turned to Keiko. "Hold out your hand." He ordered tersely. When Keiko held out her hand, palm side up, Youko dropped a few gold coins into it, then turned to point at the tent..

"Go to that tent and fetch some food to eat. Bring enough back for yourself as well." The fox spirit ordered. Keiko nodded once before going to do Youko's bidding. Shizuru tensed, knowing that Hiei would be ordering her to do the same any minute now. Sure enough, the fire demon's smug voice reached her ears.

"Hn. I might as well eat also," Hiei began, reaching into his black duster to withdraw an adequate amount of coins. He stepped over to Shizuru, then with a smirk, dropped the coins down the front of her top. "Now go. We don't have all day."

Shizuru managed to hold her anger in check and nodded before going to do her _master's_ bidding.

Both girls returned shortly, each carrying a tray with fair amount of food on it, their heads still bowed, yet raised enough that they could watch where they were going. They stopped by the table that the two demons occupied, noticing that there were only two chairs. They set the trays in front of their respective demon and stood, waiting for further instructions.

Keiko didn't have to wait long, as Youko quickly grabbed her hips and brought her down to sit sideways in his lap. She fought her urge to eep at her position, merely tensing up as Youko rested a hand on her upper thigh, his tails moving to caress her back.

The sensual moment, however, was interrupted by Hiei's dissatisfied voice. "Woman, I gave you more than enough money. Where is my change," he demanded.

Shizuru smiled at him, a smug grin that could match his own. "It's where you put the money in the first place. But if you want it, you'll have to get it yourself."

An amused smirk appeared on the fire demon's lips as his red eyes seemed to erupt into a blazing inferno of interest. "Do I now? Hn... well then, so be it."

Shizuru's smug grin immediately faded from her lips and she gasped in shock as Hiei quickly shot out an arm to snag her by the waist. He then proceeded to haul her into a sitting position in his lap as his other hand dove down into the depths of her cleavage. Shizuru managed a strangled cry as, quite by accident, Hiei grabbed onto an object that was definitely _not_ his change. She groaned as a familiar heat, which stemmed from her most intimate spot, spread throughout her body like a raging wildfire, consuming her very blood. Hiei's hand instantly stilled as his nose detected Shizuru's arousal. Smirking, Hiei resumed his task, allowing the hand to linger against the soft mound it had encountered.

Meanwhile, Youko had taken Keiko's mind from Hiei and Shizuru by ordering her to feed him by hand. The young woman dutifully picked up a bite sized rice ball from Youko's plate and brought it to his lips. Youko opened his mouth slightly, and Keiko placed the bit of food inside. As she began to withdraw her hand however, Youko suddenly lurched forward slightly, catching a delicate finger and sucking it slowly into the warm cavern of his mouth. Keiko felt her heartbeat increase and small tingles began to run up and down her spine as Youko sucked on her finger in an erotic manner, swirling his tongue around the digit as, every once in awhile, his teeth would graze the sensitive pad of her fingertip.

While Youko was busy distracting Keiko from their activities, Hiei noticed his own body reacting to what he was doing to Shizuru. He would have growled in anger, but he was enjoying himself too much. He moved his hand to her other breast, his change completely forgotten for the time being as his fingers brushed over her nipple, causing Shizuru to gasp.

Shizuru shifted in Hiei's lap, her thigh brushing over his half-hardened manhood. If she hadn't been so distracted by his hand that was currently wreaking havoc in the front of her shirt, she would have smirked and used that tidbit of information against the fire demon. But in her lust induced haze, she could only think of moving a bit more to the right to get his hand to brush over her nipple again.

"Excuse me," an oddly familiar voice said after a throat cleared.

Youko looked up, keeping Keiko's finger in his mouth with a gentle bite.

Hiei looked up as well, the backs of his fingers brushing over the soft mound one more time before he pulled his hand from Shizuru's shirt. "Yes, what do you want, Bakura," Hiei asked as he pulled Shizuru further into his lap.

"I thought you might like to know that I just received quite a few new girls that are in very good condition," he said with a slight bow. "I knew you were interested in new slaves, so I thought I would give you first pick. There are some very exotic girls in the group."

Hiei and Youko exchanged a glance, then they both nodded. Looking back to Bakura, Youko nodded once more. "When would be a good time for us to come over?"

"Whenever you would like. Though I suggest you come as soon as you can. I would hate for someone else to come along and buy the best ones off first," Bakura said, a greedy gleam in his eye.

Hiei nodded. "We will be there shortly. But I would like to finish my meal first. And these humans get so weak if you don't feed them every day."

"True. Very true. I will expect you within the hour, then," he said, waiting for them to confirm.

"No. It will not take us that long to finish. We will be there shortly," Youko said.

Bakura nodded and backed away from the table until he was an acceptable distance away, then turned and hurried back to his tent.

Youko and Hiei turned to the girls that sat in their laps, and ordered the _slaves_ to feed them. After they had all eaten, Keiko and Shizuru disposed of the waste and went back to where their respective _master_ stood.

Once the women had returned and stood in their places behind them, Hiei and Youko walked over to Bakura's tent, walking in without a sound. They looked around a bit, noticing several new faces among the girls, and one very familiar one.

Bakura walked into the tent just as Hiei was about to go on a rampage, stemming the fire demons rage. "So, see anything you like," Bakura asked as he walked around to stand in front of the two.

Youko looked around a bit more, his eyes passing over the young woman that had caught his attention when he first walked in, before he looked back at Bakura. "That one is not human, is she," Youko asked as he pointed at his desired target.

All the while, Hiei stood ramrod straight, seething. Behind him stood Shizuru with her eyes downcast, so she was completely unaware of what was transpiring, as was Keiko. Bakura turned to look at the girl Youko had indicated, taking in the sight of the petite, light green haired form.

"Ah yes, a most exotic arrival. You are right, she is not human, and I'm sure she would make a most satisfactory slave." Bakura smiled devilishly before adding, "Mind you, she _will_ cost extra, her being an ice demon and all."

Casting a telepathic message onto his shorter friend, Youko eyed the trembling form of the female before him. "Hm... I don't believe she's my type." Youko finally murmured, "Although, I'm sure Hiei wouldn't mind taking her off of your hands... That is, if she hasn't been tainted by one of your men already."

Bakura quickly assured that no one had laid a hand on any of the new shipment of girls, thus unknowingly ensuring he kept his head for the moment. Youko nodded then before they began debating on a price. Bakura hadn't been lying when he'd said she would cost extra, the steep price nearly depleted Youko's money supply, but the fox handed over the money easily enough. Once the transaction had been made, Hiei stepped over to the kneeling young woman.

"Come." he said aloud, although mentally he was already conveying assurances, as well as instructions, to the young Koorime.

_Yukina, you must refrain from using either mine or Kurama's name aloud. Neither are you to acknowledge Keiko or Shizuru. From this moment until we are away from here, you do not know us, do you understand?_

_Yes, Hiei-san, I understand._ Came the meek, mental reply.

Rising to her feet, Yukina kept her head bowed as she waited dutifully for Hiei's next order. Bakura spoke then, explaining that he had acquired their lodgings for the night. The white haired slave trader gestured for a guard near the door, instructing the big oaf to show Youko and Hiei to the tents that would be theirs for the duration of their stay. Once the new group of five made it to their tents, the girls risked a glance up. Keiko and Shizuru both heaved silent sighs of relief at seeing that the tents were right beside one another. They wouldn't have to be forced to separate.

Youko stepped forward, holding up the tents flap, allowing Keiko to go in before him. Hiei nudged Shizuru, indicating that he wished for her to go inside of Youko's tent as well. She obeyed, ducking down to enter the tent, followed soon after by Yukina. Hiei entered last, closing the flap behind him. Lighting a lantern, Keiko set it on the old wooden table that was set up crudely in the center of the tent.

Keiko and Shizuru looked up then, both girls moving to gather around their friend. "Yukina, are you alright? Those bastards didn't touch you did they? I'll rip their arms off and beat them with it if they did." Shizuru spoke softly, but her tone was filled with deadly venom.

Keiko nodded fiercely in agreement with Shizuru. Yukina shook her head, "I'm fine, really, Shizuru-san. Now that you are here, I feel much safer. But I'm curious as to _why_ you are here."

Youko's ears twitched. "Just a little work, nothing to get excited about. Although I am a bit disappointed. Coming down to a slave market for humans and finding an ice demon. What is the flesh market coming to when the best can't even keep their products straight?"

He was ignored.

Keiko tried not to feel uncomfortable with the way Yukina was looking at her. She wondered if the ice-demon thought she'd lost her mind. She certainly felt like it at this point.

She didn't even want to think about the sick crack of the whip she could hear in the background or the chorus of female voices rose up in cries of pain. Neither, for that matter, was she interested in the distinct grunting sound she'd heard when passing some of the huts, but her imagination was running wild with all manner of things that made her stomach feel queasy.

Youko stood suddenly. "Let's go, Keiko."

Her gaze shot to him. She didn't dare say a word, but her gaze was questioning.

"Bakura mentioned something of a hot spring. It's been ages since I've seen a hot spring."

She hesitated as though debating whether or not he was serious, but it proved to be so as he headed out without her, expecting her to meekly follow. She waved helplessly at Yukina before following, ducking her head before stepping out.

Youko was waiting for Keiko right outside the tent flap and grabbed the leash connected to her collar. He quickly found the hot spring, his sensitive nose guiding him to the steaming water. He went to talk to the person that was in charge of the springs, making sure there was an empty pool for them.

Youko gave a gentle tug on the leash, telling Keiko to follow him, and they both followed the demon to an available tent that surrounded one of the steaming pools. Keiko followed Youko into the tent, leaving the smelly demon outside. She quietly waited for instructions from Youko, hoping he wouldn't stare at her while she undressed.

Youko slipped his hand under her chin, tilting her head up so that she was looking at him. "Undress," he ordered.

Keiko swallowed hard as she stared up into the blazing amber eyes of Youko Kurama. The gaze was so intent that it sent a delightful shiver down her spine. She nodded, the movement causing her chin to become dislodged from his grasp. Taking a few steps back, Keiko lowered her gaze and began to remove her scanty clothes much like she had the night before. Starting with the clinging top, she managed to shed it a bit easier than last time. Next came the skirt, then the garter and so on until, at last, she was standing completely nude before the silver fox. Her arms instinctively wrapped around her waist, and she stood, trembling slightly.

She stood there, eyes cast downward, until she heard the distinct sound of a tunic being discarded into a corner of the tent. There was a brief moment of silence in which Keiko became extremely uneasy, but then Youko was beside her, his large, warm hand falling upon her shoulder as he wordlessly steered her toward the naturally heated pool of water.

Her heart was beating rapidly, pounding in her ears. The water was hot as it touched her feet and up her body as she slid into the steaming water. She turned her eyes toward the water, not daring to look anywhere else. Trembling, she sank down completely, bringing the water level up to her collarbone. She turned toward Youko, but hastily looked away. Was she supposed to still be obeying the rules?

Why couldn't he be more specific? He didn't say anything, just expecting her to know beforehand. And... he was naked, wasn't he? Ooh, she wanted to know. She didn't dare look, even if her curiosity was all but boiling over. She brought her hands up, sliding them over her breasts in the water, trying not to shiver. She heard a deep, relaxed exhale.

"Hot springs are nice, don't you think, Keiko?"

She nodded, her voice temporarily gone.

"Look up here."

She swallowed hard, but obeyed, meeting his eyes. He grinned.

"Come sit by me," Youko told Keiko. He watched as she slowly waded the few short steps through the water to reach him, the entire time she tried to keep her body under the water and out of his sight. He smiled as she stopped by his side and was beginning to lower herself to sit next to him when he pulled her into his lap.

"Where did you get that scar on your side and back," he asked, his hand lightly tracing over the mark that was totally out of place on her creamy skin.

Keiko hesitated at first, but decided Kurama, no matter what form he was in, deserved to know the truth. One quick and quite embarrassed explanation later, Youko was hugging Keiko to him, his fingers running through her hair.

"I'm sorry I made you tell me that," Youko whispered into her ear.

Keiko merely shook her head and slid from Youko's lap, moving towards the center of the spring as she tugged Youko along behind her. She turned him away from her and grabbed a sponge from the side of the spring and began running it over his back.

Her other hand reached up, bringing the long silver hair around to drape over one shoulder so that she could reach the kitsune's broad shoulders. She trailed the sponge slowly up, then down his spine, making sure she washed every inch of Youko's back. The simple act was meant as an innocent gesture, and she was almost certain that it was listed as one of her duties as a slave, but Keiko could not deny how incredibly arousing it was. Just the knowledge that she was here, alone and naked with Youko...

It was causing her stomach to do little back flips, not to mention the intense throbbing sensation that was beginning to build up within her. Within the center of her very being. So thoroughly caught up in what she was doing, Keiko didn't even realize when Youko turned around until the kitsune's hands came to rest at her sides. Refocusing her eyes, they widened as Keiko realized that she was now stroking Youko's tightly sculpted abdomen instead of his back.

"What a playful thing you are… First the spanking, now the bathing." He grinned. "You like being a slave, don't you, Keiko?"

She almost dropped the sponge.

"It's been a long time, but a male never forgets the scent of an aroused female."

Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. He could tell that? How absolutely mortifying! Yet, the thought managed to make her even more interested. It was, without a doubt, convenient to the female in a way.

"So, what's in that dirty little mind of yours?" He slid closer in the water, pressing his body flush against hers.

Keiko swallowed hard, her mouth suddenly dry. Oh, she could feel his… oh

Youko's amused laughter followed as the sponge was pulled from her hands. He dropped his head down beside hers. "Slaves," he murmured intimately. "Never can do anything right…"

He began to massage the soft sponge over her back, drawing away and sliding it up her shoulders and down her chest. Reaching her clavicle, the sponge dropped into the water, but his hands kept moving.

They pressed flat against her skin sliding slowly and sensuously. In wider circles they swirled, dipping low. He curved his hands, shifting them against her abdomen as he pulled them up, cupping her breasts. She gasped.

"Sponges always get in the way…"

At the intimate contact, Keiko tensed a bit, her eyes widening, her hands moving to brace herself on his shoulders. She felt his hands begin to massage her breasts, his thumbs flicking over her nipples occasionally. Her body began to relax against his, eyes falling closed, her chin dropping to rest against her collarbone and her mouth falling open so that she could take in more air.

Youko lowered his head to her shoulder, covering her skin in light, open-mouthed kisses, his lips working their way up her neck. He paused at her pulse point, sucking the skin into his mouth for a moment before he moved on. He removed his right hand from her breast and used it to tilt her head back so that he could look into her slightly unfocused eyes. Leaning forward once more, he took her bottom into his mouth, his teeth grazing over the soft flesh.

Keiko opened her mouth further when she felt his lips land directly on hers. She didn't know why she was reacting to him in such a way. All she knew was that Yusuke had never made her feel anything like this. The closest she had ever come to feeling anything even remotely like this had been that morning, when she had woken up in Kurama's arms and having been immediately kissed by him afterwards.

"What are you doing to me," Keiko whispered when Youko removed his mouth from hers, his lips moving to nibble on her earlobe.

"Making you feel good," was his reply just before he suddenly turned her around, her back now pressed against his chest, giving him further access to her body. One hand returned to massaging her breast, the other moved to her chin, coaxing her to turn her head towards him.

Youko sealed his lips over hers once more, and when he felt her hands move up to the back of his head, he let his hand that had been holding her chin drift down her body to rest at the top of her right thigh. Youko's mouth left Keiko's, allowing her to catch her breath, which came out more like gasps as anticipation swelled within her. She had no idea what to expect and so a sound of surprise escaped her lips as Youko's hand finally moved from her thigh to cup her intimately. She felt her legs give out as an overwhelming sensation washed over her. Her back, already resting against Youko's chest, slid deliciously down the wet skin of his torso and stomach. Her downward descent into the water was halted as a muscular arm snaked around her, just under her breasts, as well as the support of the hand still causing the mind numbing pleasure between her legs.

Youko carefully moved them to shallower water before sitting down, placing Keiko comfortably between his legs, her back still to him. His fingers, having never left the nest of downy curls they had delved into, began to move against her, once more causing her to gasp. Her legs clenched together tightly on impulse, effectively trapping the kitsune's hand in place.

"Easy, Keiko. Relax, I'm not going to hurt you." Youko's deep voice resonated throughout her body, so close was his mouth to her ear.

His tongue snaked out, making a delicious sweep along her ear before dipping inside, causing more shivers of delight to envelope Keiko's body.

The fingers shifted against her folds and Keiko arched up, a cry of pleasure escaping her parted lips. As Youko's other hand came up to caress a soft breast, Keiko began to moan in earnest, her hips beginning to buck against the pleasuring hand, as she rose higher and higher toward her peak. The steam rose from the water, causing beads of sweat to form, dampening the bangs of Keiko's hair. Brown strands darkened by the wetness, framed her face, which was twisted into a picture perfect vision of ecstasy.

Her ragged breaths became broken and uneven as she approached the edge of a great ravine that would inevitably plunge her into the depths of fulfillment. Her hands clutched desperately to Youko's thighs as the pleasure overwhelmed her. When at last, the feelings Youko was instilling in her became nearly unbearable, the dam within Keiko broke, allowing her to reach completion and morphing her moans into one coherent word.

"**KURAMA**!"

As the echoes of Keiko's exclamation drifted away on the winds, Youko felt the presence of his human half surge forth, as if summoned by the calling of her voice.

_'Youko, what have you done!? I tell you not to take advantage of Keiko and look what you do! This is highly inappropriate!'_ Shuichi's voice cried in a scolding tone.

_**'Oh? Like your inappropriate behavior with her this morning?'**_ Youko allowed his lip to quirk upward a bit as he referred to the passionate kiss that his human counterpart had shared with Keiko. He could practically feel his human half mentally blush.

'That was different, Youko, and you know it!'

Youko mentally chuckled, _**'Oh, is that so?'**_

_'Of course! You can't just... Just touch her that way!'_

_**'Says who?'**_

_'Says me!'_ Youko's eyes widened as Shuichi's voice almost growled in a familiarly possessive manner.

_**'Do you care for this human so much?'**_

Shuichi's voice grew silent, receding from Youko's mind, but not before the kitsune sensed his other half's uneasiness. Youko smiled a smug smile of triumph at having perhaps given his human half some food for thought.

Keiko blinked, sighing softly. She felt so heavy and relaxed. Vaguely, she realized she was sprawled in Youko's arms, but it became more and more apparent as her haze drifted off. When it did, she was fighting herself not to jump out of his embrace and instead quietly disengaged herself from his arms.

"Ah… um…" she attempted to speak, but didn't know what to say.

Youko merely grinned at her.

"I suppose we should get back to the others. Shizuru probably wants to bathe also."

She didn't question why he was suddenly concerned about Shizuru. He probably wasn't, but she didn't want to know his motivations. He moved to step out and she remained where she was.

What had just happened to her? Why hadn't she stopped it? Who in their right mind **would've** stopped it? She shook her head slightly, tempted to drop herself completely beneath the water. She would have if it had been cold water and not steaming hot.

No one had ever touched her before, not like he just had. Invading her personal space. No more than that, he'd touched her places that made her dizzy with pleasure, and she'd loved every naughty second of it.

"Come." He ordered and she scrambled to follow, pulling her drenched body from the water.

This was no time to be spacing out. None at all.

"Bakura, tell me of these new comers," demanded a smooth voice coming from a blocked off part of a large tent.

The white haired demon turned just as the owner of the voice emerged. Ankoku, the leader of the notorious Hiretsukan, straightened once his tall form had cleared the tent flap. Bakura's eyebrow lifted in amusement as, before the piece of material fell back into place, he was graced with the view of a naked girl lying upon his boss' futon.

With a flick of a wrist, the panther demon flung a strand of red streaked ebony locks behind one shoulder and stared at Bakura with his intimidating red on black gaze as he belted the front of his robe tightly.

"Well?"

"Yes, Ankoku-sama." Bakura replied, drawing his attention back to the taller demon.

"I believe the one to be a fox demon, but the other is hard to tell. He looks almost completely human, except for his aura, which is purely demonic. They each have their own slave, which I find them both to be quite delectable," Bakura said, a devilish grin appearing on his features at his mention of the two slaves.

Ankoku turned to look at his underling. "Tell me more of these slaves."

"There is little to tell, sir. They are both quite interesting, but it's something you would have to see," Bakura told him.

"Well, if I have to see them, then I will. Extend to them an invitation to come have dinner with me tomorrow night. It will also give me opportunity to inform them of the laws of this camp."

Bakura grinned, pulling his lips back over deceptively rounded teeth. He bowed deeply, not making eye contact with his leisurely-seated boss. Ankoku raised a hand, fingering through his endless locks of hair.

"Do make sure they are present." Ankoku urged, before waving off the underling.

Bakura backed out of the tent. Ankoku was hard on the girls. He supplied his master with women weekly - he wondered how long the one spread over that futon would last, or if she was done already. He recalled the tempting young blonde with the radical pink streaks in her hair. She'd been a fiesty one, very mouthy. He grinned, remembering when he'd brought the girl to his master.

She'd scowled, and swore and fought, scraping her nails fruitlessly, hitting nothing. He recalled the sight of Ankoku's eyes lighting with a demonic tint and he'd gotten the hell out. He hadn't escaped, however, before he'd heard a gurgled sound and the tear of cloth. Oh a night of fun for all, he'd thought as he quickly got away.

He scampered along, peering for the whereabouts of those new ones. They were a bit troublesome, but a customer was a customer, and those two had the cash to register on his radar screen. He had high hopes for the kitsune. He'd known them to be a frisky race, always taking up with new women, especially human women. He, personally, didn't understand the fascination some of these demon types held for his merchandise. They were all the same to him.

He grinned victoriously as he spotted one of the figures in the crowd and headed toward them.

"Ah, there you are, Youko." Bakura called, gaining the attention of the tall silver fox as he and his slave made their way through the crowd. Youko turned, fixing a golden eyed stare on him, the brown haired slave coming to a halt instantly at her master's side.

Bakura allowed his gaze to sweep over the girl as he made his way over to them, before turning back to the kitsune. "I've been looking for you, it would seem our leader is anxious to meet with you and your friend. He has extended an invitation to have dinner with him in his tent tomorrow night. You are, of course, encouraged to bring your slaves along with you..."

Youko eyed Bakura for a moment silently before nodding his consent. "Very well, what time should we arrive?"

"I shall come to fetch you when the time is right," Bakura supplied, "Just be prepared."

Bakura turned then, walking away even as a smirk began tugging at his lips.

Youko watched as Bakura seamlessly disappeared into the crowd. The place seemed to have certain rush hours and certain dead hours. Now, it seemed, was a rush hour. Food and women, that was apparently one of the most popular draws only held every four hours.

Interesting concept, and it worked tremendously well. There were displays for all sorts of appetities: bindings, live sex shows, whippings, and bloodletting. He liked to go around watching, stopping here and there, but the sounds seemed to upset Keiko, so he didn't stay too long in any one place.

Figuring since they'd been invited to see Ankoku, he might as well head back directly to tell Hiei they were about to approach their main mission objective. He guided Keiko along, it was almost eerie how silent she was, but that was life here. It amused him how he'd never thought of it before, the plight of the slaves.

He'd seen girls ripped open, beaten, cursed, and abused in all sorts of fashions. Some of which hadn't appealed to him, but now the baser demons of the camp disturbed him. He reached their tent and stepped in, Keiko following, looking visibly relieved when he glanced back at her. The conversation in progress promptly stopped.

"We have been invited to dine with Ankoku, Hiei." the kitsune informed his partner.

The smaller fire demon looked up, making some non-commital grunt as he stood. "I was waiting for you to get back, stay with Yukina. Woman, come."

Shizuru tensed, but rose to her feet in a surprisingly calm motion.

_'Little bastard, you're just lucky I can't kick your ass, just wait till we get back!'_ she thought viciously.

Hiei's walk slowed, just a fraction, but the grip on the leash tightened and he tugged her forward, causing her to stumble. _'Disobedience will be punished, woman. Unless, of course, that's what you were hoping all along.'_

Shizuru shot the fire demon a look that could kill, but refrained from saying--or thinking--any more. Instead, she resigned herself to be lead away by her bastard of a _master._


	4. Chapter 4

- Chapter 4 -

_Shizuru shot the fire demon a look that could kill, but refrained from saying--or thinking--any more. Instead, she resigned herself to be lead away by her bastard of a __**master.**_

Youko Kurama was awakened instantly by the sensation of one of his tails being stroked. His amber eyes flickered as he opened them, their keen ability to see in the dark an advantage as he noted that it was still nighttime. Another gentle caress on his tail caused him to glance down, his eyes taking on a look of amusement at what he saw.

Keiko was lying in the crook of his arm, his tails wrapped around her waist, as she stared off into space. But what amused Youko most was that she was stroking one of his tails while she seemingly watched invisible shadows dance on the wall of their tent. Double-checking to see if she was awake, he looked at her face and saw her shimmering brown eyes glance up at him.

"I'm sorry if I disturbed your sleep, Youko-sama," Keiko whispered as her hand stopped moving over his tails. She began to move her errant hand up to rest on his chest, but was stopped by Youko's hand on her wrist.

"Don't stop." he whispered, his words not a command, but a request.

Keiko didn't respond for a second, she was so startled. Finally, slowly, her fingers began their gentle stoking motions of before, coaxing a light, rumbling purr from Youko.

They remained like that for a moment, Youko's arms wrapped around Keiko as she continued to stroke him. Finally, Keiko lifted her gaze to his once again. "Um... Youko-sama?"

Youko opened his eyes once more, not remembering when exactly during her ministrations that they had closed. "Hmm," he grunted half dazed. Coming out of his relaxed daze, he asked "Yes, Keiko, what is it?"

The sound of his voice, so rich and deep, yet still reminiscent of the voice she was used to hearing from his red headed counterpart, caused delightful little shivers to course down her spine. "I just wanted to thank you... for saving me earlier." she whispered, her breath ruffling the fur of one of the tails as it brushed her cheek softly, sending another shiver through her.

"I promised I would protect you while we are here. Besides, Shuichi would string himself up just to punish me if I hadn't," Youko replied, almost smiling when he heard a disgruntled noise sound from within his own head, signifying that his human counterpart was listening in on the conversation.

Keiko giggled, eyes dancing in amusement as a smile appeared on her lips that only added to her endearing features. "I doubt that, Youko-sama. Kurama wouldn't go to an extreme such as that."

"You're probably right, Keiko" Youko told Keiko, smiling a bit.

_'Yes, Youko, I would,'_ Shuichi protested in his mind.

Youko looked down at Keiko as she looked back down at her hand as it continued to stroke his tails.

'_**Well, then why don't you tell her that yourself,'**_ Youko said as he quickly relinquished control of their shared body to the red haired human.

Kurama blinked a few times as he realized he was now in control of the body. He raised his free hand up so that it was in front of his face and noticed, with some difficulty in the dark, that the hand was lacking claws.

_'Youko, what did you do? What if someone sees us like this,'_ Kurama demanded.

'_**Don't worry about it. I'll take control back before you both wake,'**_ Youko reassured the red-head.

Keiko's eyebrows furrowed at the sudden realization that there was a definite lack of soft fur beneath her fingertips. Where had his tails gone? Glancing up, Keiko suppressed a gasp as she found herself staring into tender green eyes. "K-Kurama? Where... what happened?"

"Youko turned over control to me. He has a habit of being a bit unpredictable," Kurama told her, a soft smile gracing his features as he looked at Keiko.

"Oh," Keiko said softly. Slowly, the awareness of their position emerged. She was in Kurama's arms, not Youko's. Though it was a part of the mission's requirements that she be submissive to Youko, it didn't apply to the red headed version. But, for some reason, Keiko found that she still didn't want to move from her position.

Kurama noticed her reluctance to move away from him and blushed. Suddenly the memory of the kiss they had shared came to his mind, making his blush deepen.

"Why did he relinquish control?" Keiko asked idly, her question drawing Kurama's gaze to her lips as she spoke.

_'Should I lie to her. The truth is a bit awkward, after all,'_ Kurama thought.

'_**Shame on you, Kurama, for even thinking about lying to her. You lie to her, I'll have to take control back from you and show her how you really feel,'**_ Youko chided.

"You remember when Youko said that if he didn't protect you, I would string myself up just so I could punish him," Kurama asked, pausing long enough to feel her nod against his chest. "Well, I told him that I most definitely would, and he told me to tell you myself, then gave me control," Kurama explained, feeling his flushed face heat up even more in embarrassment.

Keiko blinked in amazement, his admission taking her completely by surprise. "You- you really mean that?" she asked before blushing furiously. "I-I mean, not that I'd want you to or anything, but... Why?"

Kurama just stared at Keiko, her innocent question causing his thoughts to collide together in turmoil. He didn't quite know what to tell her. He obviously knew how he felt, but he didn't know how she would react to him.

'_**What are you waiting for? You already know she isn't involved with Yusuke. And you should know she will accept you. Just look at what happened in the hot spring,'**_ Youko said, hoping to prod the red headed human into saying something.

_'Youko, it isn't that easy,'_ Kurama replied, then sighed. _'But, you are right. I need to tell her.'_

"Because I would do anything to keep you safe. I have admired your beauty since I first saw you during Yusuke's first fight with Hiei," Kurama told her.

Keiko lowered her eyes, biting her bottom lips as she took in what Kurama had just said. He said he...would do anything to keep her safe? That he... admired her beauty? Turning her gaze back up to meet his, Keiko released her lip in order to ask, "You... think I'm pretty?" and immediately wished she could take back the obviously stupid question. Why on earth had she asked that?

Kurama smirked at her, knowing exactly what he wanted to say to that. "No, I don't think you're pretty," he told her, his hand moving to cup her chin, tilting her head up so that she was looking directly at him as he dipped his head a bit. "I think you're the most beautiful creature on the planet," he whispered just before he lightly kissed her, giving her plenty of opportunity to push him away.

Keiko felt herself melt at Kurama's sweet words, her eyes fluttering closed, as she pressed closer to him, allowing him the opportunity to deepen the kiss if he so desired. He must have, for when Kurama felt her move closer, he proceeded to do just that. Bringing the hand cupping her chin around, he buried his fingers within her mass of auburn curls and massaged her scalp by flexing them slightly. The movement of his fingers relaxed Keiko even more and Kurama pressed his luck by shifting his body so that he was now slightly above her.

Keiko groaned when some of Kurama's weight settled on her body and she spread her legs some, allowing his body to mold against hers more firmly, his right knee pressed firmly between her thighs. She wrapped her arms around his torso as he pulled away, giving them both a few minutes to breath.

Kurama smiled at Keiko in the dark, watching her chest rise and fall rapidly as she panted, her lips still parted. He watched as her eyelids slowly opened, revealing her unfocused eyes searching his emerald orbs out questioningly.

"What's the matter, Kurama," Keiko asked.

Kurama shook his head. "Nothing," he replied.

"Then why did you stop," she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

An amused chuckled sounded softly in the darkened tent, "I just wanted to make sure you were okay with this. I don't want to push you beyond the limit you are willing to go, Keiko."

"Why don't you let me worry about my limit, okay, Kurama?"

Kurama smiled, somewhat eased at her response.

"I'll let you know if it's too much," she promised, a twinkle in her eye that might have been amusement at his politeness.

Kurama nodded and then leaned down to cover her lips with his again. This kiss was more possessive than the last however, and it wasn't long before Kurama's tongue was prodding against the barricade of her teeth, begging to be let in. She complied, willingly opening up to him, allowing him access to her mouth. Keiko moved her hands up from around his chest to plow through his hair, reveling in the silken feel of the crimson strands.

Kurama slid his hand from Keiko's hair and let it skim over the skin of her neck and further south until his palm was cupping her breast, his thumb flicking over the cloth-covered nipple. He hesitated for a moment, almost expecting her to shove him off of her and smack him for being so bold, yet all she did was arch her back, pressing her breast into his hand more firmly and tugged on his hair as her tongue glided over his.

Keiko moaned into the kiss as Kurama's hand began to massage the soft mound of flesh he held. Her hands began moving, seemingly of their own accord, and slid down Kurama's back once more until they reached his behind, which she fully grabbed with both hands. Kurama pulled back abruptly, startled at the bold motion. Keiko seemed amused, breaking into a small fit of laughter at his response, her hands remaining firmly planted against him.

"Really, I had no idea you were such a little vixen, Keiko." he murmured, his breath a soft caress.

Keiko's eyes became hooded as she gazed up at him, uttering words in which she had no idea from where they came. "You haven't seen anything yet, Kura-kun."

"Oh? Is that so," Kurama asked, smirking at her in the dark. "You're right, I haven't. You're clothes are still on."

Keiko blushed despite her previously confident words. Her clothes? Did she dare go _that_ far? _'Well, you went much further with Youko than this,'_ a mysterious voice sounding a lot like her own stated in the back of her mind. Technically, she _was_ still Kurama's slave, even if he was in his human form at the moment. Her confidence renewed, Keiko asked, "Are you ordering me to take them off, master?"

Kurama quirked an eyebrow at her, having almost forgotten about the roles they were playing for this mission. Shaking his head, he removed his hand from her breast and cupped her chin.

"Only if you would do so willingly and _not_ because I had ordered you to as your master. I thought I already made it clear. Only what you want to do," Kurama told her, his head dropping, his lips brushing gently over her own.

His words, so tender and assuring, seemed to trigger something within her as her eyes shimmered in the night. She nodded, shifting her body out from under his own and rose to her feet. It was dark within the tent, leaving Keiko at a disadvantage when she attempted to find the zippers and fasteners that kept her clothes fitting snugly. Finally feeling the cold metal zipper of her skirt, Keiko drew it down slowly until she was able to shimmy out of the leather material. It hit the floor of the tent with a telling plop, conveying to Kurama that she was indeed getting undressed. Of her own free will.

His breath hitched, heart pounding as another article of clothing fell to the ground. Soon, Keiko was completely bare, and shivering in the night air. Kurama reached out a hand, imploring her to take it. Keiko took his hand and allowed him to guide her back to the futon. She was slightly surprised when she didn't feel his body move back over her own, but instead it moved away from hers. She looked in the direction he had gone, trying to see through the inky darkness with no success when she heard the light sound of a shirt hitting the floor. She next heard the distinct sound of a zipper, then the sound of material hitting the floor once again. Her eyes tried to search him out in the dark for a second time, only to jump slightly when he was suddenly sitting on the other side of her. She hadn't even heard him move.

"Kurama," her voice called out in question.

"I'm here," he said softly, his hand reaching out to once again take hers.

His long fingers entwined with her own, and he drew her closer until she was once again lying against him on the futon. This time, however, there was a major difference as Keiko felt his warm, naked flesh press firmly against hers. Keiko could have sworn her heart skipped a beat or two when she looked back into Kurama's eyes and--through the shadows--glimpsed the passionate expression in his emerald orbs.

He advanced slowly, imploring eyes silently asking permission in which she willingly gave in the form of a small nod. His free hand reached up to brush a wayward strand of auburn hair from her eyes as he closed the gap between their lips, sealing them together in a heated kiss. The hand which had swept back her hair then proceeded down her body, lightly ghosting a trail between the valley of her breasts, down along her concave stomach before hesitating at her non-existent panty line. Keiko felt a hint of annoyance at the delay, and so arched her hips in an urgent plea for him to continue.

At her encouraging movement, Kurama lowered his hand further until he was firmly cupping her. He felt her gasp into the kiss when he dipped a finger inside her liquid heat. He nearly gasped himself when he felt her inner walls grip his finger. He had been able to access Youko's feelings while in the spring earlier, but it was immeasurably better feeling it for himself.

With gently strokes, Kurama's finger began a steady rhythmic probing of her moist center, causing Keiko to moan deeper into his mouth as her body writhed at the pleasant sensations such an act elicited. Keiko felt breathless and had to turn her head to the side, effectively breaking the kiss to gulp in a much-needed breath of oxygen, only to turn back and catch his lips again once she was done. Kurama immersed himself in the feel of her as he inserted a second finger. He groaned lightly when her inner muscles continued to contract around them.

After another minute or two of Kurama stroking Keiko from the inside, she once again broke the kiss when she felt something hard prodding her thigh. As she panted trying to catch her breath, her body arched further into Kurama's hand as he hit a particularly sensitive spot. Immediately, she removed one hand from his hair and slid it down his torso until she found his hardened manhood was the cause.

Kurama groaned when she grabbed him, his length eagerly reacting to her attention by hardening further. Needing something to keep his mouth busy with, he attached his lips to her throat, suckling at her pulse point, knowing there would be a bruise in the morning. Kurama trailed light kisses and nips along her collarbone, then headed south towards her right breast. He had felt the glorious mound in his hand previously. But now he wanted, needed, to taste the flesh that had felt so wondrous in his palm earlier. Keiko's breath hitched as she felt a warm wave of air brush across her breast a second before moist heat surrounded the puckered tip.

"Ahh," The cry left her lips before she could stifle it, though in truth it remained unnoticed as it blended in well with similar sounds coming from other nearby tents.

Her back arched instinctively as she strove to bring herself even closer to her red headed soon-to-be lover. Yes, lover. She thought, coming to the decision. This was what she wanted. It felt too perfect, too right to be anything else. She wanted Kurama as much as it seemed he wanted her and she had no intention of letting the opportunity pass her by.

"Kurama, I need more," Keiko whispered pleadingly, gently squeezing his member that she still held in her grasp to emphasize her meaning.

Kurama pulled his mouth from her breast to look Keiko in the eye. He felt his heart flutter in his chest at the passion-glazed expression he found there. The look _he_ had put there. _'She wants more,'_ he thought, smiling. _'Well, I'll just have to give her more.'_

Kurama nodded his understanding as his lips brushed over hers for a moment before he began to slide down her body, only to pull up short when her hand didn't release his length. He pulled back up to look at her, smiling.

"Keiko, you need to let go so I can give you more," Kurama said, amusement clear in his voice.

"Oh, right," Keiko said as she hesitantly released his manhood, her cheeks heating up in embarrassment.

Kurama smiled reassuringly at her before he leaned down to suckle at the skin on her neck. His lips glided over her skin, his tongue occasionally slipping between his parted lips to lick at her skin. He paused at her belly button, dipping his tongue into the little cavern momentarily before continuing down her body.

Keiko's hands came back to once again bury themselves in his silken hair. Shudders began to rack her body as she felt his lips skim over her sacred spot in order to nibble at the tender flesh of her inner thigh a moment before switching sides and doing the same with the other. Keiko whimpered softly as, once he was done, his lips ascended to the juncture of her thighs, his tongue parting the dampened lips of her sex as it delved inside to taste her very essence.

Keiko nearly bolted upright as a shock of pure pleasure streaked throughout her body, only to have Kurama place a hand against her chest and firmly press her back onto the futon again. She felt the vibration of his amused chuckle against her most intimate spot and the sensation nearly drove her insane. Unable to help herself, Keiko issued a deep moan of approval that told Kurama he had most definitely accomplished the task he had set out to do. The hands buried in his hair began to tug insistently as Keiko panted and gasped.

"Ku-Kurama... I-I can't... it's... too much. Oh, Gods!" Keiko nearly shrieked as Kurama began to suckle on the tiny bundle of nerves, which in turn sent Keiko tumbling into her second orgasm since their mission had began.

The hidden spring of liquid heat bubbled forth, spreading throughout her viens, causing Keiko to buck her hips forward against Kurama's face as she clenched her teeth to hold back a scream. Satisfied with her reaction, Kurama rose from his position, crawling up her body in a predatory way reminiscent of his youko self. Kurama leveled his eyes with Keiko's and smiled at her bliss filled features while he waited for her eyes to open. His smile brightened when her eyes fluttered open and she tried to focus unsuccessfully on him.

"Ready for round two," Kurama asked as he raised a hand to brush a few wayward locks of hair off her face.

Keiko moaned and a smile crossed her features before an aftershock sent shivers coursing through her body. "If it's as good as that," Keiko replied, leaning up until her mouth was inches from his. "Then yes, Koibito, I am."

That was all Kurama needed to hear as an amorous growl emerged from deep within his chest. Closing the scant distance between them, the red head poured every ounce of passion he held for the girl in his arms into the kiss. Hands once again tangled in his hair as he shifted his body to settle between Keiko's parted legs. Bracing himself up on his knees and one forearm, Kurama pulled back, his free hand traveling down Keiko's body again until his fingers brushed against her moist opening, assuring himself that she was indeed ready for what was to come next. The slick heat confirmed that she was ready and Kurama smiled as he brought his hardened shaft into alignment with Keiko's wet passage.

Keiko tried to relax as she felt him begin to slowly push in, knowing that there would be pain and being tense would only make it worse. She untangled her hands from his hair and moved them to rest on his shoulders. She felt Kurama pause for a moment, then he suddenly thrust in the rest of the way, breaking through her hymen.

Keiko's pain-tinged cry was cut off as Kurama's lips descended on hers again. He stilled within her, allowing her time to adjust to his intrusion. Raising his head, Kurama stared into a face who's eyes shone with unshed tears, yet was graced with such a tender smile that he had no choice but to return it with one of his own. A moment passed before Keiko felt that she was ready to continue, which she conveyed to Kurama by bringing her legs up to wrap around his trim waist and shifting her hips against his.

Kurama nodded once, then lowered his mouth to her breast to taste of her flesh once more. At the same time, his hips started a slow pace of thrusting in and out of her body. He felt her hands that had been resting on his shoulders move until she was clutching at his back, her nails digging into his skin slightly. Keiko moaned, her body arching against Kurama's, the only part of her body still resting on the futon was her head.

Kurama could feel every twitch, every spasm of Keiko's body from the inside as he continued his pace. He kept his thrusts gentle, not wanting to hurt her. But Keiko obviously had other ideas because soon her hands wandered down from his back to his hips, her fingers grasping tightly as she applied pressure, indicating that she wanted more.

"Harder." The gasped word caught the red head completely by surprise. "Please, Kurama, I won't break."

The begging tone of her voice was almost enough to make Kurama lose it entirely. Allowing his body to settle fully against hers, Kurama brought his hands up to grasp around her shoulders, giving him leverage to use in order to increase his thrusts. Keiko moaned happily as Kurama began to move faster, his hands pressing her shoulders down against the futon below them. She felt his mouth leave her breast and trail kisses up to her shoulder, his tongue lingering on the bite mark he had made previously.

Kurama moaned as Keiko started to meet him thrust for thrust, deepening his strokes even further. He could feel Youko's presence in his mind, lurking beneath the surface and relishing the backlash of pleasure that seeped through their link. Kurama's eyes closed as he shifted slightly, rising to his knees as his hands moved down to grip Keiko's hips. Lifting up, Kurama brought himself into a kneeling position, his hands lifting Keiko's hips in order to keep them bound together as he continued to thrust deeply. The change in position startled Keiko briefly, but that was soon chased away by the deeper penetration of Kurama's manhood the new position granted. Leaning down, Kurama once again slid his hands up, gathering Keiko's upper body to him as he straightened, causing Keiko to find herself straddling Kurama's hips with her legs still around his waist.

Keiko wrapped her arms around Kurama's neck, thoroughly enjoying the new position. She used her legs still wrapped around his waist for leverage as she began to ride him. She pulled away from him some, her hands gliding over his body until they rested on his chest. Feeling a little bold, she suddenly pushed on his chest, sending the unsuspecting red head toppling onto his back.

Green eyes widening in surprise at Keiko's uncharacteristic actions, Kurama stared up at her in awe, Youko lending his keen eyesight to his red headed counterpart in order for him to make out the lovely young woman sitting atop him. His breath was nearly stolen away from him at the sight. _'She is beautiful,'_ he mused, and the thought of Yusuke's loss becoming his good fortune passed fleetingly through the kitsune's mind. Settling onto his back completely, Kurama grasped Keiko's hips as she continued to grind herself against him in the most pleasant way imaginable.

Kurama could feel Keiko's inner muscles beginning to tighten around his length as she ground herself against him. He could also feel his own pending release building as he made short thrusts up into her body. Keiko moaned loudly as her climax hit her, her body tensing immediately as the pleasure washed over her. Keiko collapsed bonelessly on top of Kurama, her breaths coming in sharp gasps as her entire body thrummed with the aftershocks of her orgasm. Kurama's hands came to once again rest on her hips and held her to him as he made his final upward thrusts before he too lost control and came inside of Keiko's contracting heat.

As his body relaxed from his orgasm, Kurama slumped back down on the futon, his arms wrapping around Keiko, holding her close to him as they both recovered from their mutually satisfying climaxes. Tiredly, Kurama pulled the sheet over them, protecting them against the night's chill. He could hear the even breathing of Keiko as she slept, and was soon lulled to sleep by the sound.

Keiko was awakened from her exhaustion-induced sleep by movement from the body she was laying on. Her sluggish mind barely grasped the memory of what had transpired only... minutes ago? Hours? She didn't know, the meaning of time had been lost in her post-coital slumber and the only thought that managed to become clear in her head was: _I was just made love to by Kurama._

A satisfied smile coming to her lips, Keiko snuggled closer to the warm body, her head burrowing into the crook of his neck and issued a contented sigh as she traced her lips along the pulse point she found. As her mind became more aware, she realized the body she was laying on felt differently from the one she had fallen asleep on. Her brows furrowing in confusion, Keiko lifted her head slightly from the neck she had been lavishing kisses on. She looked up, her eyes widening in shock as they locked with a pair of amber orbs, which seemed to be ablaze with the amount of lust they displayed. Placing her palms on the chest beneath her, she began to push herself up, only to stop part way when she realized that she had fallen asleep still joined with Kurama.

The hardened length still buried within her body slid further in at her movement, sending shock waves of pleasure throughout her body. She shuddered, her eyes falling closed as she tried to compose herself, but then Youko shifted, causing a whole new wave of heavenly sparks to course through her. Not able to withstand it any longer, Keiko let out a low, approving moan. Youko smirked in satisfaction. He moved his hands, sliding them from her back, where they had rested all night, to wrap around her shoulders. Quickly, he reversed their position so that he was now on top.

Youko smiled down at Keiko, his golden eyes glittering with amusement. "I take it you and Kurama had a good time last night," he asked.

Unable to respond, Keiko could only nod weakly as she stared up at Youko as he continued, "Well, let's say we start the morning on the same note, ne?"

Keiko felt a wave of apprehension mix with her confusion and as Youko leaned down, intent on taking possession of her lips, Keiko managed to bring up her hands and push hard against the ardent fox's chest. Granted, the resistance wasn't enough to dislodge him, but it was enough to get his attention and Youko paused to look down at the little vixen in his arms.

Keiko's eyes became more focused as she finally realized Youko's intentions. The way she and Kurama had fell asleep previously left her and Youko intimately joined, and the fox planned on taking extreme advantage of it. _'But...'_ Keiko thought, _'I can't do that with him. Not after Kurama and I... I-It just wouldn't be right!'_

"Please, stop."

The smirk slipped from Youko's lips at Keiko's words, a look of concern taking it's place. "What's wrong, Keiko?" he asked, his body stilling above her.

Keiko turned her head, unable to meet Youko's gaze. She felt as if she were betraying Kurama by being in this position, which was silly considering Youko was an elemental part of Kurama, but still... "I... I can't do this with you. I don't want to betray Kurama like that."

Her words caused Youko's concern to fade away, being replaced by a look of confusion.

"You must know by now that Kurama and I are the same person, Keiko." Youko tried to reason, refusing to show how her refusal of him had actually hurt.

"It just doesn't feel the same," Keiko said, turning her head to the side.

Youko frowned, catching her chin with his fingers, he urged her to face him again. "Keiko, can you honestly say that you don't want me as you want my human form?" he asked, remembering the episode in the hot springs and knew she couldn't deny it without lying.

Keiko looked into Youko's eyes and was shocked by the myriads of emotions she saw there. "No, I can't," she replied in a small voice.

Youko released her chin, allowing his fingers to trail down the column of her throat in a stroking gesture, causing Keiko's eyes to flutter closed in pleasure. "And I cannot deny that I want you, my little vixen." He whispered, leaning close to her ear. His warm tongue slipped out to lap at her earlobe and Keiko shuddered.

Keiko's hands moved to grip his shoulders, not sure if she wanted to push him away or pull him closer. Quickly making up her mind, she pushed him away. "Youko, I'm sorry. I just can't. Not right now," she told him, hoping he would understand.

Youko stopped, not wanting to push her. He could always command her to submit... But he found that he didn't want to. That he preferred her to come to him of her own free will... Like she had with Kurama. Sighing, Youko pulled back, withdrawing his still hardened length from the tight warmth enshrouding it and shifted to lie beside her. "It's still early," he said, pulling her to his side and wrapping an arm around her waist. "Get some more sleep."

Keiko nodded meekly, astounded by his sudden mood shift, but was grateful he hadn't tried forcing her. She reluctantly snuggled up to his side, resting her head on his shoulder. She fell asleep relatively quickly, and soon found herself in an expansive dreamscape.

It was a beach. A long strip of endless land from one end to the other, edged by a an ocean painted blood red by the sun as it descended into the horizon. The raging waves lapped at her toes, which were dug into the cooling sand. Overhead, the sky darkened until the stars and moon appeared, casting everything a pale white glow. Keiko sat, her knees bent up to her chest, her arms crossed over her knees as her chin rested atop her arms. A false wind blew lightly, ruffling her hair as well as the grains of sand.

As she sat there enjoying the false scenery, she didn't notice another being standing behind her until she heard an achingly familiar voice.

"Lovely, isn't it," the voice asked.

Keiko turned around not knowing what to think of seeing Kurama in her dream. "Yes, it is," she said quietly as he sat next to her.

They sat in silence together, side-by-side in the sand, until Keiko shifted slightly and turned to face her dream companion. "Kurama... what are you...h-how did you get in here? I mean, this is a dream, right?"

Kurama's brows furrowed in a frown, though there was a glitter of amusement in his eyes. "You mean, you don't dream about me," he asked, sounding a bit hurt.

"Kurama, no, that's not what I meant," Keiko said, turning to look at him directly. Kurama's laughter cut her off before she could continue.

"I was merely playing with you. Now, to answer your questions. Yes, this is a dream, but I have telepathic abilities," Kurama replied.

Keiko blinked. "You do?"

"Yes, though I rarely use them." Kurama elaborated, "I felt this was worthy of an exception."

Sighing, Keiko tilted her head to rest on her arms as she still gazed at Kurama. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

Kurama mimicked her pose, resting his head on his arms and knees and stared back into her eyes. "I wanted to discuss you and Youko."

"Oh," was all Keiko said as she looked away.

"Keiko," Kurama called softly, his voice drifting to her on the ocean breeze. "Keiko, look at me."

Keiko hesitantly looked back at Kurama, her eyes holding uncertainty. "What about Youko and me," she asked quietly.

Kurama's smile was totally unexpected, as was the chuckle that followed. "Keiko, you have nothing to be ashamed of. Youko cares for you as I do. Our love for you is one and the same. Don't think of being with him as a betrayal of me on your part. I'll love you, regardless."

Keiko gasped, her eyes widening at his open admission of his feelings for her. Finding herself not able to speak, Keiko reached out and grabbed the hand closest to her with her own. Lacing their fingers together, Kurama gave a comforting squeeze that sent a wave of warmth throughout her body, easing it as well as her mind. Keiko scooted closer, leaning against him so that her head rested on his shoulder, her eyes falling shut in utter contentment.

As her eyes remained closed, the dreamscape slowly melted away. The ocean receded, the sands blew away, the darkened sky rolled back, leaving only Keiko wrapped in the arms of a smiling Youko Kurama.

'_**Thank you, Shuichi.'**_ Youko thought softly to his other half.

_'It's the least I could do, Youko. After all, you've made my wildest dream come true.'_ the human half replied lightly.

Youko nodded, then nuzzled his face into the top of Keiko's hair, falling asleep with her sweet scent filling his senses.


	5. Chapter 5

_- Chapter 5 -_

_Youko nodded, then nuzzled his face into the top of Keiko's hair, falling asleep with her sweet scent filling his senses._

Keiko woke up just before dawn, her eyelids drifting open to meet with a sea of silver satin surrounding the face of an angel... or the devil, depending on your point of view. Youko still slept, his face relaxed, giving off an unearthly beauty that rivaled his human counterpart's. She allowed her gaze to travel over the handsome features, a soft smile gradually emerging as she recalled her dream and the talk she'd had with Kurama.

_'They both love me...'_ her eyes seemed to glow at the thought.

She allowed her gaze to drift, admiring the view as she came to a decision. Slowly, a hand rose up to lightly stroke one of the fuzzy fox ears as she remembered his response the last time she had touched them. They twitched slightly as her fingertips brushed them softly and she stifled a giggle.

Youko was slowly being pulled from his dreams by the feeling of something rubbing his ears. His still heavily sleep fogged mind applied the sensations to the last fleeting vestiges of his dream of Keiko massaging his ears. Tightening his arm around the firm softness in front of him, Youko snuggled further into the incredibly soft pillow, while in his dream, he was snuggling closer to Keiko's breasts. His mind registered an intense pleasure as the Keiko in his dream rubbed her thumb over a particularly sensitive spot.

"Mmm, Keiko, that feels so nice," Youko spoke softly, not knowing that his vocal cords had come to life and had voiced the compliment.

The Keiko in his dream, as well as the wonderful feeling pillow he was snuggled up against, stiffened in shock, and suddenly the haze lifted from his mind. One eye popped open as he pulled back slightly to look up into the shocked eyes of Keiko.

They lay there, staring at each other and not really knowing what to do. Keiko began to blush as she realized she'd been caught, for her hand--though stilled at the moment--remained touching the ear she'd been caressing. She didn't really want to move it either, she rather enjoyed rubbing them. Then a mischievous thought crossed her mind. Who said she _had_ to move them? Slowly, a wicked smile appeared on her lips.

Youko _really_ didn't want to relinquish the soft warmth of Keiko's body but--at the same time--he didn't want to push her either. Sighing, he prepared to move, but came up short when the pleasurable sensation of his ears being rubbed started up again. Eyes widening, Youko looked back at Keiko and was shocked to see the look of contentment her eyes bore. Youko groaned as he pulled her closer against his body, moaning when her fingers brushed over a sensitive spot before suddenly switching her hand to his other ear. As her fingers began massaging his ear, working her way towards the tip, Youko shuddered against her.

"Keiko, you should stop," Youko warned her as he tried to pull away a short distance, against his will.

"What if I don't want to," Keiko said softly as she applied a bit more pressure as her fingers rubbed over the same spot that had made him shudder before.

Growling in pleasured frustration, Youko quickly rolled over so that he was resting on top of Keiko, one of his legs nestled firmly between her thighs as his head hovered over hers. He nearly sighed in relief when her fingers still remained on his ear, though he was sure she could feel his stiff length resting against her hip.

"I suggest you stop unless you wish to go much further," Youko told her, grinding his hips against hers to emphasize his point.

He expected her to realize the fine line she was walking and cease rubbing his ears. To pull away while blushing and stutter furiously as she withdrew from their intimate position. That's what he expected. He did not expect the smile she directed back at him, nor did he expect her to raise her other hand and begin stroking both his ears at the same time. And he especially did not expect her to shift against him in her own point of emphasis as she spoke, "And I repeat," she said, her voice coming out in a near purr of seduction, "What if I don't want to stop?"

Youko growled at her comment right before he dropped his head and took Keiko's lips in a bruising kiss. His tongue swept out of his mouth, and he was shocked when he felt her mouth yield to his immediately. After getting over his shock, he moved his hand up to her cheek, tilting her head to give him better access to her warm mouth. Keiko responded without hesitation, her tongue rising to the occasion to battle willingly with Youko's. Allowing the heat of the moment to guide her, she stole one of her hands through the river of silver silk, down the muscular shoulders and back, to come to rest at the base of Youko's tail bone, just above where his tail protruded. Both hands began stroking with coordinated actions, causing Youko to groan deeply as an intense sensation nearly overwhelmed him.

Youko pulled away from Keiko's lips as her fingers brushed over his sensitive skin. "Mm, so my little vixen has returned, ne?" he growled lustfully.

Keiko answered him with another stroke of his ear and tail.

Youko slid his hand from her cheek down her body, his fingers ghosting over her skin, until his hand came to her breast. His thumb brushed over her nipple, drawing a gasp from her, effectively breaking the kiss. He waited until her eyes drifted open before he moved again. With a smirk, Youko lowered his head down her body, keeping eye contact with the woman beneath him.

As he moved down her body, he applied a string of feather soft kisses in his wake, earning him soft gasps and moans from deep within her throat. Smirking, he captured a rose colored nipple between his lips, his tongue flicking the hardened nub teasingly. He brought a hand up to cup the other breast and Keiko shifted slightly, arching her back to get as close to the sweet sensation as possible.

Youko slid his leg further between her thighs, spreading them farther apart as he moved into position above her. His head came up, amber eyes searching out hers as Keiko lifted her legs to wrap them securely around the kitsune's trim waist. Youko grinned at her compliance before lowering his head back down to capture the other nipple. An idle hand began to stroke its way down her ribs, hips and thighs.

Goose bumps rose on the skin he tenderly teased, causing her to shiver, a soft whimper of pleasure escaping her lips.

"Ah, Youko... " she moaned weakly, "Please, don't tease..."

"Oh, but my sweet vixen, teasing is half the fun..." he whispered seductively over her sensitive breast.

Keiko began to rock her hips against Youko, searching for the ever present need that Kurama had awakened in her earlier that night. Youko gave a soft growl of pleasure as he pressed back against her. Moving his hand between them, he placed it upon her womanhood, slipping a single finger between the folds and lovingly began to stroke her, feeling her already moist sex become wet even more. Keiko moved against his hand, searching for the release her body was craving. Her fingers became lost in a river of silver silk as she entwined them in his hair.

Youko once again moved back up her body, never removing his hand from between her thighs. He captured her lips in a possessive kiss, his tongue slipping past her lips as they parted in a soft gasp. Keiko moaned into Youko's mouth as she felt the pleasure from his actions building her toward a climax, her hips arching up into his hand, hoping to create more friction. Her own hands that were buried in his hair moved to once again massage his ears, drawing a pleased growl from Youko's throat as he pulled away from her lips.

Youko's free hand moved to cup Keiko's breast, tweaking the nipple between his thumb and forefinger, smirking when he heard her moan and saw her tilt her head back in pleasure. His eyes brightened when they landed on the creamy skin of her neck and he lowered his lips, his teeth gently nipping at her skin, his finger still moving in her slick sheath.

Keiko began panting harder as her climax reached its peak, the tightening ball of pleasure near its bursting point. She crested the edge of completion at the same instant she heard Youko's animalistic growl near her ear as he felt her inner muscles contract invitingly. Withdrawing his fingers from her quivering heat, Youko clutched her hips in a sure hold before leaning down.

"Hold on tight." he whispered into her ear, barely giving her a second to comprehend his words before he was rising up, lifting her from the futon as he moved into a sitting position with her straddling his lap.

Keiko squeaked in surprise, her legs tightening their hold around his waist as her arms went around his neck at the sudden shift in position. Brown eyes sought out golden amber as she realized his intention.

"Y-Youko?" she managed to stammer as she felt him lift her up slightly then lower her again. Her voice was lost as the sensation of his hardened length penetrating her stole it away.

She instantly found it again when Youko lifted her once more, though not high enough to remove his member from her entirely, before abruptly slamming her down upon his heated flesh, hard.

"AHH!" she cried, her arms tightening around his corded neck as he did it again... and again.

Over and over he repeated the process until he felt Keiko begin to follow the movements on her own. Soon, Youko had no need to guide them as Keiko untwined her arms from his neck, bringing her hands to his shoulders. Her nails dug into his skin where her hands clenched as she began to ride him.

Youko groaned, his head falling back as his hands merely rested on Keiko's hips, seemingly along for the ride. He could feel her inner muscles clenching rhythmically as she worked her body up and down his aching length, her soft breasts rubbing against his chest. Pulling his head back upright, he opened his eyes, idly wondering when they had closed, and watched Keiko's pleasure filled face, her head cocked to the side, her mouth open, allowing gasps and moans to escape her lips frequently.

Growling, he leaned forward and attached his lips to her collarbone, suckling and nipping at the skin, slowly working his way south, towards her slightly bouncing breasts. Capturing a rosy tip between his lips, Youko applied a gentle pressure as he suckled whilst his arms moved to encircle her waist, drawing her even closer. Velvety inner muscles clenched, giving the slightest indication of Keiko's approaching orgasm. Youko took the signal to heart as he leaned backward, moving to lie on his back, allowing him the ability to rock his own hips in synchronization with Keiko's own.

As soon as she began to convulse around him, Youko acted, rolling them so that she was trapped beneath him. Youko felt himself on the brink of his own orgasm and proceeded to increase the pace of his thrusts as he buried his face in the crook of Keiko's neck and began to lick at the fading mark.

Keiko moaned at the mixed sensation of pain and pleasure as she faintly felt Youko's fangs pierce her skin and infuse the mark with more of his energy to renew his temporary claim. Her slender hands rose up to bury themselves in the thick mass of Youko's hair before trailing up stroke his ears teasingly. Youko groaned, removing his fangs from her neck as he shifted to his knees slightly, lifting her hips with him to continue his thrusts and Keiko responded immediately. Her hands fell from his hair, clasping the sheet and used futon beneath her for leverage as they finished the ride to blissful oblivion together.

She felt Youko collapse on top of her momentarily before he moved himself to her side. Keiko sighed contently, snuggling closer to Youko's warmth despite her pleasantly aching body. Youko let a small smile creep onto his lips as he wrapped his tails around his human and nuzzled the mark on her neck. Drawing back after a moment, Youko peered down at the thoroughly satiated Keiko before suddenly rising to his feet. Keiko looked up at him questioningly before squeaking in surprise as he swooped down and lifted her into his arms.

"Let's bathe, my vixen." he stated as he stepped over the rumpled futon and towards the entrance to the tent.

"What?! Youko, no! We don't have clothes on!" Keiko protested.

"I'm sure you don't bathe with clothing, ne?"

"B-but what about the camp? Those horribly, disgusting things could see me!" _And those other slaves could see you.'_ A suspiciously jealous sounding voice echoed in her mind.

Youko smirked. "If it means that much to you, fetch the sheet. It matters not to me in all honesty."

Keiko's eyes narrowed dangerously, "Well, it matters to me! You are _not_ parading through this camp naked, Youko Kurama!"

Youko's eyebrows rose in understanding. _**'I see instinctive jealousy lingers here.'**_ he thought. "Okay, my slave," he said aloud, winking at her devilishly, "we shall share the sheet, but nothing else. Any other cloth is too constricting."

With that, Youko knelt down again to retrieve the sheet and wrapped it around both him and his suddenly possessive little vixen as he exited the tent.

Meanwhile in the next tent, Hiei laid upon his futon, his comforting night and darkness slowly slipping away from him in the wake of the coming dawn. Shizuru lay beside him, curled up in blissful sleep. His sister rested on a small pallet near him on his other side, sleeping comfortably. No matter how hard he tried, he could not get his mind to shut down and let him rest. He was too confused and overwhelmed by his own actions earlier that day.

_Dammit, what the hell was I thinking marking her like that? She is most likely to try and truly kill-'_ He inwardly smirked at the thought. _'Well, that wouldn't be anything new with her. But that still leaves the question as to why it happened. How could I have lost so much control during that simple act? I have never been that careless before, obviously, considering I have never marked the ones I have mated with before. What does this mean, then?'_

Shizuru shifting in her sleep drew his attention from his thoughts and he turned slightly to look at her. He was slightly surprised when she rolled and snuggled into his chest in her sleep, her arm moving to wrap around his waist. A warm feeling of contentment welled up inside of him as she fell back into a restful sleep. Maybe this odd feeling was the cause of his loss of control.

Whatever the reason, Hiei suddenly felt extremely relaxed. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, his hand pulling the sheet up with it, and drifted off into a peaceful sleep, content to let his worries wait until later.

George peered around the crowded campgrounds. Koenma had told him the others were around here… Somewhere. He stepped into the main part of camp, scratching his head, considering peeking his head into the tents. Just as he was about to head off in search of them someone grabbed his elbow. He turned back to find a young man at his side.

"Eh?"

The shorter, white haired demon frowned up at him and was about to say something when someone called his name.

"George!"

The blue ogre turned in the direction his name was shouted, and from across the market he saw the white haired kitsune heading toward him, a female in tow behind. He blinked, was he wearing a sheet?

"Ah, Youko, good to see you."

Youko peered around George, coming face to face with Bakura. He spared the slave trader a glance before looking back at George.

"What took so long?" Youko asked irritably, motioning for the other to follow as he walked away. "I've got a girl for you. Come see."

As he did, George could see it was Keiko in the sheet with him, looking somewhere between embarrassed and furious. Either at the stares she was getting from the other demons or the fact she was prancing around camp in a sheet. He couldn't tell.

"Er… right, right." the ogre called out, falling into step behind the sheet draped kitsune and human.

From behind the departing group, a pair of intense brown eyes narrowed. _'Which girl does he intend to sell the oni?'_ Bakura thought, shifting the two bundles of clothing Ankoku had ordered him to deliver to the new arrivals.

_'If he sells his human before Ankoku-sama has had a chance to sample her, then the master will be most displeased.'_

Figuring he needed to discover what was going on, Bakura proceeded to follow the direction in which Youko, George and Keiko had gone.

As he neared the two tents, he could sense the auras of the entire group within the fire demon's domicile and decided to blend in with the passing crowd to observe which slave the blue, horned ogre left with.

Hiei looked up when the flap to his tent was pulled to the side, and saw Youko and Keiko walk in, wrapped in a sheet, probably from their futon, followed by George. Yukina sat up straight, before bowing modestly, murmuring a quiet hello to the newcomers from where she sat on Hiei's left. Shizuru, on Hiei's right, looked up and nodded at the small group.

"Hello, Hiei. George is here to purchase Yukina from you," Youko said, his voice slightly changing at the word 'purchase.'

Hiei glanced up at the ogre that nearly towered over him and then over at Yukina who was in the process of straightening her linens into folded piles.

"No."

Everyone stopped. Keiko peered around from behind Youko, eyebrows narrowed.

"What the hell do you mean 'no'?" she snapped, wanting her friend outside the walls of this hellish place and back to someplace safe.

He shot her a glare and she ducked behind Youko quietly. "She's not going with him."

Youko turned a glance toward George. "Whether or not you approve of Yukina's escort back to the Reikai isn't the issue, think of the alternative." he suggested logically, hoping to quell Hiei's morning grumpiness and get back to his own tent.

Keiko looked pissed about the sheet and he wanted to calm her down, or maybe just tick her off some more… Whichever proved more fun when the time came, he determined.

Yukina stood. "I think it will be just fine. I'm sure he will be a good escort." She tossed a tentative smile at the tall Reikai servant and moved toward him. "It would be easier anyway, with me out of the way."

Her reasoning seemed to dare Hiei to challenge, and he, as expected, did not. He merely waved a hand absently as though to shoo all the unwanted parties out of his tent.

George nodded before reaching for a pouch tied on the side of his loincloth. He tossed it to Hiei who, in turn, tossed it to Youko. The kitsune opened the small pouch to see a hefty amount of money inside, perhaps double what he had spent on purchasing Yukina in the first place. He looked at Hiei.

"Let's call it even, shall we?" the fire demon stated and Youko nodded.

"Very well, then. If all is settled here, Keiko and I shall return to our tent for a time. We still must dress before breakfast."

The kitsune left then, followed by Keiko. George took hold of Yukina's leash and waved goodbye to Shizuru and Hiei before also departing, leaving the two occupants of the tent in a suddenly uncomfortable silence.

Outside, Bakura watched as the tall one departed, the young koorime he'd sold to the other following along on her leash. Had the demon purchased her for his friend? He hadn't mentioned him, but he supposed it didn't really matter.

Determining the other slave was staying and he wouldn't be in any trouble, he approached the fire demon's tent to deliver the first of Ankoku's presents. He stood outside the tent's entrance and allowed his energy to flare slightly in a non-threatening way to ensure the occupant of the tent knew of his presence. A moment passed before the flap was thrown open and the dark haired demon exited. He was just replacing his katana into the sheath strapped at his waist; his upper body was bare.

Bakura tilted his head to the side slightly, his dark eyes peering through the small gap in the tent's flap and a small smirk came to his lips as he caught a glimpse of female flesh before the fire demon growled a warning at him, snapping the flap completely closed.

"What do you want," Hiei sneered, not exactly in the mood for visitors. Having to hand his sister over to that incompetent ogre had put him in a fairly bad mood.

Bakura stepped back a pace, hoping to at least appear complacent. No need to ruffle unnecessary feathers, he thought, eyeing the demon before him. He wasn't exactly looking for trouble, especially with Ankoku in residence. "I was asked to deliver this to you, a gift from the generous Lord Ankoku."

Hiei accepted the nondescript bundle, a frown marring his features at what he had gathered from the lackey's mind_. They don't want to upset us, huh? There must be something we don't know about,'_ Hiei thought as he put on a show of examining the package. Noticing that the demon had yet to leave, he looked up and caught his eye.

"Is there anything else, or are you just wasting my time," Hiei growled.

"Well, the package is actually for your slave. My lord requested that she wear only the contents to the dinner tonight," Bakura said, not at all happy with the fire demon's attitude.

At a particularly offensive glower, however, Bakura decided to take his business elsewhere. He still needed to get over to Youko's and deliver the other package. Not that he was looking forward to it. He was thinking Ankoku should get another errand boy; he was far too busy to deal with this.

_Dealing with these moody clients is really a rather shoddy job,'_ he thought, readjusting his remaining package. _Although,'_ he thought back to the sight of moaning women and female faces contorted in pain, _it really is such a good place to work.'_

Bowing slightly, the white haired demon departed, leaving Hiei to continue scowling down at the package and made his way to the next tent over. Once again, he allowed his aura to flare non-threateningly, and waited for the silver kitsune to make an appearance.

It took a bit longer for the fox to appear at the entrance than it had Hiei, and by the way the demon's hair was mussed, his absence of clothes and not to mention the glare on his face, it was quite apparent that he had come at a bad time…

"Yes," Youko growled, his amber eyes focusing briefly on the package Bakura held in his hand, then settled a glare on the demon that had interrupted his fun.

Bakura swallowed at the glare that was sent his way. _Definitely a bad time,'_ he thought before speaking up. "Ankoku-sama wished me to present this gift to you. He asked that your slave wear only the contents of the package to the dinner tonight," Bakura informed the silver kitsune, holding out the package for him to take.

If there was one thing he'd learned working here, it was never to interrupt the customers when they were playing with their new slaves.

Youko eyed the package, grabbed it and dropped the tent flap closed in Bakura's face.

Bakura turned away with a huff, but was altogether glad. Some confrontations resulting from interrupted playing sessions ended with impaled heads and he damn sure wasn't interesting in fighting.

Now that his orders had been carried out it was all up to those two to show up on time. He headed back to his tent with a sigh. Where were all the customers today, he wondered, stepping in his tent.

Meanwhile, inside the first tent, Hiei dropped the bundle that Bakura had given him into Shizuru's lap. "Here. You are to dress in this for the dinner tonight." He said gruffly, before stalking across the tent to retrieve his shirt and cloak.

Shizuru cocked an eyebrow at the bundle before daring to look in the fire demon's direction. "Do I get to bathe before this dinner thing?"

Shizuru could sense the slight tensing of Hiei's body at her question and mentally slapped herself. Why had she asked that? Did she really want to risk a replay of their last bath together? Absently, she raised a hand to rub at the mark on her neck. He still hadn't given her an explanation about that. She eyed him again, noting that he still had his back to her, his head bowed slightly as if examining the dark material in his hands.

"Look, forget I asked. I can go without a bath for one day. Hell, it might help keep those letches out there away while we're here."

Hiei turned to look at Shizuru, his eyes widened a fraction at her. "That would hardly help. Some of the creatures here would find that more attractive," Hiei told her, heavily weighing the costs of taking another bath with her. She was his mate, even if she didn't know it, so he would be unable to make the same mistake of marking her as he did before.

Shizuru wrinkled her nose. "Some of them really think like that," she asked, glancing from her dirty clothes to the distant fire demon.

Hiei nodded. "I'll take you for a bath later," he told her as he wrapped his cloak back around his shoulders.

Shizuru sighed, knowing that that would be the best she would get from her psuedo-master for the moment and proceeded to busy herself by rolling up Yukina's old bedding as well as hers and Hiei's.

The heavy panting and moaning coming from within Youko Kurama's tent left no doubts in anyone's mind, exactly what was taking place. Inside, Youko rolled off of Keiko, a small smile gracing his lips as he rested on the rumpled futon, Keiko curling up against his side. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, settling her into the crook of his arm.

Keiko snuggled against Youko's firm body, wincing slightly at the dull ache that plagued her in intimate places. "You know, if you keep this up, I won't be able to walk by the time we get back home." She grumbled a bit unhappily into his chest.

Youko's smile widened with male pride before concern marred his features. "I have a plant that will ease the pain for you," he told her, his arm around her shoulders pulling her closer. "But for now, get some rest."

Keiko blinked. "Really?" The fox nodded, and she smiled, "Thanks, Youko." Her eyes wandered from Youko's golden gaze; across the tent to the small bundle that the kitsune had threw down carelessly a number of minutes before. "What is that?" she asked innocently.

Youko's eyes drifted to the package. "That is a gift from the owner of this camp. He wants you to wear whatever is in there to dinner tonight," he told her, his hand moving down to rest on her hip. "You should get some rest before dinner," he told her.

Despite her desire to protest, Keiko finally gave in when a yawn escaped her suddenly. Being Youko Kurama's slave certainly was a tiring job… one that she found she enjoyed entirely too much. Trusting that her kitsune would find that plant he had talked about for her before dinner, Keiko wrapped herself around the warm body beside her and fell fast asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

- Chapter 6 -

_Despite her desire to protest, Keiko finally gave in when a yawn escaped her suddenly. Being Youko Kurama's slave certainly was a tiring job… one that she found she enjoyed entirely too much. Trusting that her kitsune would find that plant he had talked about for her before dinner, Keiko wrapped herself around the warm body beside her and fell fast asleep._

Keiko could only stare down in disbelief at the filmy material in her hands. Softly, she moaned, as she closed her eyes in dismay. That head demon guy expected her to wear this... this... scarf? No way! She had thought there could be no other clothing more revealing than the scant material she had on, but... this was much much worse! The silky material was tinted an emerald green color which reminded Keiko of Kurama. His eyes were nearly the same beautiful shade of green.

There was two pieces as far as she could tell; a top half which was basically made up of two sheer scarves that had golden hoop like catches on the ends. She studied the top for a moment, wondering how in the world it was supposed to go on, before sitting it aside. The bottom half was like a skirt, but the side seams were split all the way to the hip in a way that would surely leave a good deal, if not the whole portion, of the leg revealed. There was a leather belt and matching collar also, the same color as the outfit except for the golden amulet like adornment on the belt. Picking it up, Keiko noticed there was an image engraved on the golden surface: a sleek, dangerous looking panther.

She placed the belt aside and looked around her once again at the "gift" Youko had said came from the slave trader, Ankoku.

Turning her attention to the silver kitsune standing in front of the small vanity mirror in the corner, she sighed. Youko and herself had just come back from the hot spring...again...though this time, there had been no naughty trysts. Much to Youko's disappointment. She was much too sore for that sort of thing at the moment. Idly, she hoped that Youko had remembered to acquire the plant he had mentioned earlier.

"Do I really have to wear this?" she asked.

Youko, turned away, glanced around to see her motioning toward the garments laid off to the side.

His eyes flickered over the material with interest. "Nice choice," he mused.

Keiko scowled. "I'm not wearing it for you! I'm wearing it for the psycho demon nut case running this place."

Youko's amusement vanished. "As unpleasant as it may be, we cannot afford to offend Ankoku."

Keiko huffed, ultimately knowing there was no way out of wearing the dreaded garment, if it could be called a 'garment' at all.

Keiko turned around to look at the scarves she was supposed to wear as clothing that night. She huffed, crossing her arms. They didn't even send any under garments, meaning they probably didn't want her to wear any. She nearly shuddered at what that could mean.

Meanwhile, Youko had walked up behind Keiko and wrapped his left arm around her waist, resting his chin on her right shoulder. "I know you don't want to wear that, and this dinner probably won't be much fun for you, but after tonight, after we get this guy, I can take you home," he told her, placing a soft kiss on her neck after he finished speaking.

Keiko sighed and leaned back against Youko's chest. She knew he was right, and the sooner she got this over with; the sooner she could go home. Maybe she could even talk her parents into visiting some family relative for a weekend, and have Kurama over.

Keiko blushed at her ecchi thoughts, but she couldn't deny that it was something she wouldn't mind happening. She was definitely spending too much time with Youko. He was a bad influence on her. To cover for her wayward thoughts, Keiko returned to the subject of the clothing she was to wear.

"Fine. I'll wear it. But you better get this guy fast, cause I'm not wearing it for long.

Youko smirked behind her. "Is that a promise," he asked, his soft voice laced with arousal.

_'Youko,'_ Shuichi chided disapprovingly, _'Keiko is in no condition to sate your desires, now or later.'  
_

'_**Oh, hush. You forget I have something for her pain that works almost instantly,'**_ The fox spirit replied.

"Youko, you know I can't. I need time to heal some," Keiko said, disappointment clear in her own voice.

Youko smiled at her. "Don't worry, I was only teasing. Speaking of your pain, I've got that plant ready for you," he told her, his hand still actively massaging her lower stomach.

"You do? That's great," she said turning around in his arms to look at him.

Youko nodded as he held out a small bowl of paste in between them for her inspection.

"I have to eat that or something," Keiko asked, a perplexed look on her face.

Youko chuckled at her. "Not quite. It has to be applied to the inflicted area directly," he told her, a completely serious look on his face.

Keiko paled. "Oh, I see," she said, blushing a bit at the implications.

They both stood in silence for a moment, Youko not wanting to push her into something, and Keiko quite embarrassed by what had to be done to ease her pain.

"So, uh, how exactly, do we apply it," Keiko asked, looking at the wall of the tent beside her rather than at the silver kitsune in front of her.

"Well, in normal circumstances, application would call for another round of mating, since a male's shaft can reach much further and more completely inside the female than anything else," He told her, happily watching the bright blush that spread from her breasts to her hairline.

"But, we don't have time for that, so you'll have to settle for a manual application," He told her, wiggling his fingers in front of her face.

Keiko looked up at Youko, complete trust shining in her eyes. "What do you want me to do," She asked, looking him in the eye.

Without a word, Youko leaned down and took Keiko's lips in a kiss, getting her to open up to him almost immediately. After a minute of stirring her passions, he pulled back and smiled reassuringly at her.

"Lay down on the futon and relax," Youko told her.

Keiko did as asked, and was soon spread out on their futon, Youko between her legs with the bowl of paste in his left hand and the first two fingers on his right hand covered in the mysterious paste.

First he covered her outer folds and clit with the salve, completely rubbing it in, enjoying the slight squirm Keiko gave whenever he hit the small bundle of nerves. After getting another application of paste on his fingers, he gently began working his first finger insider her, making sure to cover her inner walls, then began working his second finger in her.

Youko smiled as Keiko began moaning at his healing ministrations. Pulling his fingers out, he quickly covered them in yet more paste and worked them back inside the squirming Keiko. As he massaged the healing mixture into her inner muscles, he made note of the places that made her moan especially loud or arch her back more than usual, and returned to them often.

Youko set the bowl down and used his left hand to apply more of the concoction to her, his fingers rubbing over her clit. It wasn't long before he felt her muscles contracting around his fingers as her orgasm began to overtake her. He pushed his fingers in as far as they would go and swiped the pad of his thumb over her clit one last time and looked up to watch as she came.

It took a few moments for Keiko to get her breathing under control. Her eyes opened slowly, having closed them as her climax had consumed her. Her passion hazed eyes met Youko's golden gaze and immediately became flustered as realization dawned on her what had just happened.

"Youko!" She hissed accusingly, glaring at him despite her flushed state. "I can't believe you did that!" Her indignant protest was derailed as the kitsune chuckled.

"Come now, Keiko. You can't say you didn't enjoy that. And you do feel better, ne?"

Keiko blushed. "Yes, but that's beside the point."

Youko arched an eyebrow questioningly, "Oh? How so?"

"It... it just is!" Keiko huffed, getting up from the futon and stalking over to where she had left the clothes and began to get dressed. "Let's just get this over with...and fast." She muttered as she began to don the scanty pieces of material.

Hiei tried his best to ignore the nearby splashing of water, he really did. However, it wasn't easy, what with his mind constantly flashing images of what he knew the spring contained, barely hidden within its steamy depths. Soft, smooth flesh... supple, rounded curves... a fiery, passionate female... his mate.

Hiei growled, a nagging voice in the back of his mind teased him, taunting him with crazy ideas, each one more suggestive than the last. Frowning, he shook them off and verbalized his annoyance. "Hurry up. We don't have all day." He snapped, then muttered under his breath. "Just like a female to take forever."

From within the hot spring, Shizuru threw him an angry glare, her eye twitching as her irritation grew. She was in no mood to be rushed, not since she had seen what the appointed "formal wear" to this farce of a dinner had consisted of. She really dreaded what was sure to be the equivalent of "dining with the devil" and was more than willing to put it off for as long as possible. An idea emerged in her mind, causing her glare to morph into a look of mischief. Slowly, she made her way to the bank of the hot spring, where Hiei sat. Thinking she was following his order, Hiei simply sat unmoving, waiting for her to get out and get dressed. Therefore, he was taken completely by surprise when Shizuru's arms suddenly encircled his slim waist and he felt himself being pulled into the spring with her!

Spluttering indignantly, Hiei resurfaced to the sound of amused laughter. "Now that you need to dry yourself off, maybe I can relax a bit, and actually get clean." Shizuru's words left the fire demon in a much more sour mood than he had been in previously.

Shizuru turned to return to her bathing, simply ignoring the fact that she had impulsively dunked, and more than likely pissed off, a dangerous fire demon.

Glaring at the once again bathing Shizuru, Hiei silently crept up behind her, moving smoothly through the water without a sound. Placing his hands quickly on her shoulders, he hooked his right foot in front of hers. Pushing her forward with his hands at the same time that he pulled his foot back, Hiei returned the favor as the seemless maneuver had Shizuru pitching face forward before she could react, effectively dunking her. As Hiei had before her, the tall brunette came up spluttering, one hand coming up to wipe away her wet hair which was now plastered in her face. The growl she issued nearly matched Hiei's as she used her open palms to push the water from her side forward, causing a small wave of water to splash up and into the fire demon's face. Hiei was shocked to say the least.

Without really thinking, Hiei copied Shizuru's move, using his arms to cause a slightly larger wave of water to surge her way. Shizuru let out the equivalent of a squeal as the wave drove her to step back a bit. Her lip quirked in amusement as she retaliated. This set off a chain event that Shizuru would have never thought possible in regards to the proud, but rude fire demon she had come to know. A smirk crept onto Hiei's lips, as if he were beginning to actually enjoy their mock warfare, each bombarding the other with wave after wave of steamy spring water. Shizuru soon found herself unable to deny that she was enjoying herself, and thus let loose a loud, gleeful laugh and continued the sport. The phenomenon continued until finally, as they came within arms reach of each other, Hiei, lost in the carefree moment, grabbed Shizuru and wrapped her in his arms, holding her tightly to him.

Time seemed to stand still as they looked into one another eyes, Shizuru slowly sinking down onto her knees in the water as if in a trance. Hiei's red eyes stared meaningfully into her own brown orbs and her breath caught, causing her laughter to grow silent. As if drawn to one another by some invisible force, the couple leaned into one another, their lips narrowing the space between them until finally meeting in a soft, gentle kiss, though it didn't stay gentle for long.

Hiei pulled Shizuru tighter against him, his hands sliding up and down her back for a minute until they came to rest on her rear. He felt her hands slide up his chest, her arms twining around his neck as she opened her mouth, her small tongue coming out to lick tentatively at his lips. Shizuru parted her legs slightly when she felt Hiei's knee begin to nudge between them. She gasped when his leg brushed against her sensitive sex, breaking the kiss as she tossed her head back. Hiei watched Shizuru's face for a moment, the passion that caused a glazed look to come to her eyes, apparent. The passion that he caused in her. He lowered his head to her neck and began gently suckling on her pulse point.

Shizuru moaned softly as she allowed the sensations to overwhelm her. All earlier irritation with the hot headed demon was forgotten as she reveled in the touch of his lips on her skin. When he began to nip her skin lightly Shizuru automatically brought her hands up to bury them in his dark hair. Hiei smirked. Her responses had already been conditioned so that she responded almost immediately to his touch. _'And such responses they are,'_ he thought, gently nipping the juncture of her neck and shoulder, earning a moan and slight shudder from Shizuru.

Shizuru's hands in Hiei's hair tightened, pulling him closer. Leaning down, she pulled his head back and covered his lips with her own. Hiei was, needless to say, shocked at her forwardness. Raising a hand to her hair, he angled her head and took control of the kiss, licking her lips hungrily as he sought entrance to her mouth. The dominance issue, however, soon became a moot point when Shizuru suddenly came to her senses.

Pulling back, the brunette forced herself to disengage from the fire demon's embrace.

...or at least, she attempted to.

Hiei felt Shizuru try to pull away and opened his eyes to look at her. "What's the matter," He questioned, panting slightly from their recent activities.

Shizuru blinked, the realization of what was happening finally beginning to take root and she shook her head. "What... what are we doing?" She asked uncertainly.

Hiei looked at Shizuru, his eyes glazed over, and his mind slowly absorbed her question through the haze that surrounded his head. 'She did it to me again. How can this woman make me lose control so completely,' He pondered.

"Hn," Hiei snorted as he untangled himself from Shizuru. Hearing water sloshing around him, he looked down and finally realized he was standing in nearly waist deep water. "You are washing. Hurry and finish," He growled out as he exited the pool of water.

Realizing she'd basically been dismissed, Shizuru's eyes narrowed, sending a particularly deadly glare in the fire demon's direction. Hiei ignored it and proceeded to dry himself off. Grumbling to herself, Shizuru quickly finished her bath and exited the spring as well, snatching up the skimpy articles of clothing as she went.

"Okay, short stuff, I'm all done. Let's get this shit over with, it's gettin' old."

Hiei turned and watched as she dressed quickly, his eyes scanning over her body as it was barely covered by the sheer clothes that had been sent to her by the camp leader. The one they had been sent to capture. The one that was the reason for his being paired with Shizuru. The one that would see her as she was now, nearly naked.

That last thought made Hiei growl in anger. That foul demon would be able to look at his mate. He almost told her they would not be going, but he could not do that. That would blow their cover if he were to refuse to go to that stupid dinner.

He looked at her neck where he had placed his mark upon her and was pleased to see that the bite mark had already morphed into a black flame tattoo.

He growled lowly in his throat. If he could see the mark on her, then surely everyone else would be able to see it as well. He hadn't had the time to think of how to explain what he had done to Shizuru, and he didn't want someone else telling her before he had time to inform her of his actions, as rash as they had been. Hiei already knew she would react adversely when he told her. He didn't want to think of how she would react if someone else said something about it before he could talk with her in more favorable surroundings.

Shaking off his dark thoughts, he stepped up to Shizuru and motioned for her to lean down. Hiei held back his smirk when she rolled her eyes at him before she complied with his request. He snaked an arm around her neck and placed a gentle kiss on the corner of her mouth before releasing her.

"Come. Let's get this over with," He grumbled as he led her away from the hot spring and back towards Youko's tent.

Stunned at the fire demon's unexpected display of affection, Shizuru could only follow behind Hiei in silence. They arrived just in time to see Youko and Keiko exiting the tent, the kitsune wearing his usual flowing tunic. Keiko looked as displeased about her chosen clothes as Shizuru had been about hers. Hiei took notice that the outfits were identical save for the color. Where Keiko's was a deep emerald, Shizuru's was a deep red, almost the color of blood.

At their arrival, the silver kitsune turned to acknowledge them with a nod. Hiei grunted in response and the girls looked at one another briefly in greeting, but other than that, remained quiet. A few moments later, Bakura arrived, his eyes immediately roaming over the two scantily clad women as he addressed the demons.

"Ah, I see the clothing Ankoku-sama chose for your slaves fit well." The white haired demon said, his eyes lingering a bit too long on the girls' exposed flesh. Hearing low growls of warning from both demons, Bakura quickly averted his gaze, clearing his throat nervously. "Um... right. Please, follow me and I shall take you to Ankoku-sama's tent."

Both Hiei and Youko nodded, but continued to glare at the other demon's back the entire way. After a few minutes of walking through the sex slave camp, the small group came to a rather large and elaborate tent. Bakura turned to his lord's dinner guests, his eyes once again straying to the females of the group.

"Wait here while I announce you to Ankoku-sama, please," he said, turning on his heel and entering the tent.

While the lackey was gone, Youko placed his hand on Keiko's shoulder, giving her a quick, reassuring squeeze, before he returned to standing as Bakura had left him. Meanwhile, Hiei ran his fingers from Shizuru's elbow to her fingertips faster than anyone else could see. He knew she would probably be nervous, since this was a very important part of their case, but he wasn't willing to do something as visible as Youko had done. Shizuru felt the fleeting caress and moved her eyes to look at the fire demon beside her, but she could detect no movement from him.

Brows furrowing in confusion, Shizuru wondered once again at the uncharacteristic actions from the normally aloof fire demon. Ever since that incident in the hotspring, he had been acting very... differently toward her. Though it was carefully concealed, she could still tell.

She was brought back from her musings by the reappearance of Bakura at the tent's entrance. "Ankoku-sama wishes for you to join him." He said simply, before moving back to allow the four dinner guests to enter.

A sense of apprehension came over both women as they stepped through the flap and into the large tent behind their demons, both luckily remembering to keep their eyes trained downward as they were expected to do. Not being able to see their host was a bit unnerving, especially when he spoke, the deep, rich tone of his voice caressing their ears like silk and sending shivers down both their spines.

"So glad you accepted my invitation to join me," Ankoku said, not bothering to rise from where he sat, lounging in a pile of cushions at the head of a table heavily laden with an assortment of food and beverages. "And you brought your slaves along as well. How wonderful."

Hiei snorted. "Well, I certainly hope the clothes you sent weren't for Youko and myself."

"Hm, you're right. Not quite your style. Perhaps something in leather?" Ankoku smirked at the scowl this comment earned him. "Ah, forgive my rudeness. Please, by all means, seat yourself. We've a feast to enjoy, after all." The panther demon waved a hand, indicating the four pillow seats positioned around the low table.

Youko sat down on the cushion closest to Ankoku's right while Hiei sat down on the demon criminal's left, both signaling for the girls to sit as well. Both the fire demon and the kitsune demon warily watched the panther as he eyed the human slaves.

The sound of an office door being thrown open violently startled the tiny Reikai ruler who sat behind his large oak desk. Hastily, chibi Koenma pressed a button on the remote he held in his hand, turning off the screen he had been watching so aptly when the Spirit Detective and his two companions had stormed in...

Well, two stormed in, one sort of scurried along behind them.

"Yusuke! How many times do I have to tell you, you have to get permission before entering Koenma-sama's office!" The blue haired ferry girl admonished.

"Shut up, Botan. I think we have a right to burst in after what me and Kuwabara just had to go through." The dark haired teen ranted before turning back to the sweat dropping prince. "Alright, here's the stupid guy you sent us after, Koenma."

A dull thud was heard as Kuwabara dropped his dead weight bundle onto the floor at the foot of the desk. The bound form uttered a low groan briefly before going silent again.

"Che, I don't know why you even sent us after him, he was more annoying than anything..." Yusuke trailed off as he noticed the nervous look on the tiny ruler's face. Instantly, suspicion set in. Eyes narrowing dangerously, Yusuke stared pointedly at the mini prince. "What're you hiding?"

"N-nothing?"

"Then if it's nothing, why'd you turn off the monitor when we came in? Are you watching nudie movies?"

Koenma gave an indignant snort. "Just because you do, doesn't mean I have to! I'm above such things."

"Is that so? Then why don't we just see what's on that screen then!"

There was a brief scuffle as Yusuke and Koenma fought over the tiny remote, resulting in Koenma falling off the desk as Yusuke held up the small device in triumph. With a click of a button, the large viewing screen flickered to life. Silence filled the office as the room's four occupants stared at the screen, three in shock, one in dreaded anticipation for the inevitably violent reaction.

"OHMYGOD! THAT'S MY SISTER!!"

"K-K-Keiko?!"

"Oh dear..."

"Uh, no it's not," Koenma shouted as he jumped and grabbed the remote back from Yusuke, shutting off the monitor before his feet even hit the desk again.

Yusuke and Kuwabara both spun around to glare twin looks of death at the tiny deity, simultaneously, converging on their prey, bloody murder evident in their eyes. Yusuke reached him first, allowing Koenma only enough time to squawk in an indignant manner as his employee proceeded to shake him while screaming out his obvious disapproval of what he'd just seen. Kuwabara was in no better state than his partner.

"How could you?! How could you pick those two girls for that kind of mission and not think you'd get your ass kicked?!" The orange haired teen bellowed.

By now, the Reikai prince was practically blue in the face, due to Yusuke's hands which were currently wrapped tightly around his neck, squeezing steadily.

"Yusuke, Kuwabara, stop this instant. If you kill him, he'll never be able to tell you where the girls are," Botan lectured, while grabbing each boys arm, and trying to drag them backwards.

Yusuke and Kuwabara each allowed the ferry girl to drag them back a step, dropping the toddler ruler on the floor.

"Alright Jr, speak now, or forever hold your peace," Yusuke growled out, glaring at Koenma.

Just as Koenma opened his mouth, he was interrupted.

"Koenma-sama, what's going on? Your door is wide open, and several of the workers out front look like someone was trying to kill them," George, the blue ogre, said as he walked into the office, Yukina's leash still in hand, with said leash was still attached to the ice apparition.

All eyes turned to the pair in the doorway, anger once again giving way to shock.

"What the _hell_," Kuwabara shouted, running towards George. Well, actually, his one true love, Yukina. George was just in his way, so he got unceremoniously knocked down, releasing his hold on the leash in the process. "Yukina-san! What are you doing here? And why are you dressed like that? And what is that ogre doing leading you around on a leash?!" He questioned, blushing furiously as he hastily removed his white duster and draped it around the Koorime's scantily clad body.

Yukina's voice was soft as she attempted to sooth her upset suitor.

"George! Why haven't you already taken Yukina to her room where she can get properly dressed!" The upset prince admonished his ogre. The last thing he needed was for the boys to proceed with their earlier attempt at murdering him.

"I was going to, Koenma-sama, but everyone in the front office looked so frightened, I decided to come and check on you, especially with the way your door was open," George replied.

"Baka, ogre. Why didn't you take Yukina to safety first, if you thought I was in danger," the young spirit ruler shouted, crumpling up a piece of paper and chucking it at the blue ogre's head.

"Uh, that kinda defeats the purpose of your safety, sir, to say nothing of Miss Yukina," The ogre babbled, backing away slowly, and adding with with wide eyes at Kuwabara's savage looking face at that remark, "Not that Miss Yukina's safety isn't imporant, er, more important..."

Really, George was at loss. He wasn't sure who was scarier, Koenma's blustering anger, or Kuwabara's twitching vein and flaming eyes...

"Enough," Yusuke screamed, directing all attention to him once again. "Tell me where Keiko is, now, and maybe when I come back, I won't make your death so painful. Maybe."

...or the sight of Yusuke's fist clenched around Koenma's shirt, and his master's subsequent quaking ascent into the air...

"If you would... kindly put me down, Yusuke Urameshi..." Koenma said peevishly, trying to mask his nervousness. The boy was getting stronger all the time...

"Yusuke-san, please put down Koenma-sama." Yukina's soft voice pleaded with the angry teen.

Yusuke practically growled, but finally relented, setting the tiny ruler down on his desk again, stepping back to fold his arms across his chest. "Explain. Now!"

Koenma cleared his throat. "Not long after you left on your assignment, it came to our attention that a certain group of demons were operating an underground slavery ring in the Makai," He began, "Kurama and Hiei, as you should know, were the only male demons competent enough to have infiltrated this ring and bring in the leader, Ankoku. They needed to be safe from suspicion, so female "slaves" were required to complete their disguise."

"But why Keiko and Shizuru?" Yusuke interrupted, earning himself a glare of his own.

"I'll have you know I don't know many girls- human girls, that is. And Keiko and Shizuru are already familiar with Reikai Tentei affairs.We were extremely careful. Kurama and Hiei both taught the girls the customs, so to speak, so they would not draw attention to themselves."

At this point, Kuwabara jumped in with an observation of his own. "You said Keiko and Shizuru. I see you didn't mention Yukina-san..."

"Er, yes... well, Yukina was not our responsibility..."

"NOT YOUR RESPONSIBILITY?"

Hastening to explain further, Koenma continued, "Seeing as how she had been kidnapped on her own, we had nothing to do with that. However, once Hiei and Kurama discovered Yukina's presence in the camp, they took precautions to obtain her safety. I sent George to retrieve her once the mission began to come to a head."

Yusuke, Kuwabara and Botan could only stare in stunned silence a moment before the two young men blinked and then turned to look at one another. Without a word, they turned and headed towards the door.

"Wait! Where do you two think you're going?!" Koenma demanded.

"Where else? To get Keiko and Shizuru out of this mess!" Yusuke shot back over his shoulder as he and Kuwabara exited the room.

Slumping back into his chair in defeat, the chibi ruler cradled his head in his hands as Botan moved to pat his back comfortingly. "If those two idiots screw this up, my dad's gonna _kill_ me!" He moaned miserably.


	7. Chapter 7

- Chapter 7 -

_Slumping back into his chair in defeat, the chibi ruler cradled his head in his hands as Botan moved to pat his back comfortingly. "If those two idiots screw this up, my dad's gonna __**kill**__ me!" He moaned miserably._

Silence filled the tent as the group of five sat around the low table. Keiko shifted uneasily in her seat, not at all liking the looks that the Slave Camp leader kept giving Shizuru and herself. She could see him staring from the corner of her eyes as she struggled to keep them trained downward, but curiosity kept getting in the way. The looks he sent were most disturbing, making the petite girl want to get as close to Youko as possible.

Shizuru had this unexplained desire to scoot even closer to the intolerable fire demon as well, but didn't let the urge get to her. She figured it had something to do with this slave trader's aura, which was completely black. _'At least Hiei's is blue. A very nice shade of blue,'_ she thought, then mentally smacked herself for even comparing the two and the odd thought afterwards. She glanced up and noticed she was being watched, by both Hiei and the slave trader. And she didn't like the way the latter was looking at her. A whimper passed through her mind, but she didn't let any sound escape her.

"Shizuru, come here," Hiei ordered, knowing Shizuru would probably feel safer sitting a bit closer to him.

So he did the only thing he could at the time. When she settled herself next to him, Hiei reached his arm around her and began fondling her breast. Shizuru's eyes nearly popped out of her head when Hiei's hand landed on her chest, and she was about to protest his actions, when the pleasurable sensations hit her brain, causing her to relax into his hand.

From across the table, Youko smirked at his partner's antics and decided that he had a good idea. Snaking an arm around Keiko's waist, he chuckled in amusement at the startled squeak she gave as he hauled her up into his lap. Draping her legs over one muscled thigh while supporting her back with an arm, he wrapped his other arm around her and began to contently nuzzle her neck.

Once her initial surprise had passed, Keiko felt herself melt instinctively into Youko's arms and begin to enjoy his playful attentions. She couldn't stop a giggle from passing her lips as Youko's lips touched a ticklish spot at her neck and blushed prettily due to it.

From the head of the table, Ankoku's eyes hardened as he observed the two demons who were obviously quite wrapped up in their slaves at the moment. He held back the growl that threatened to spill from his lips at the site of the two girls cuddled up against their demon masters. Those slaves were so responsive. He wanted to know what kinds of responses he would be able to get out of the two, a plan forming in his mind for a way for him to get his hands on those two slave girls.

Hiei was rather distracted with the girl that had wiggled her way onto his lap when he felt a blow to the back of his head. Before the blackness took over his sight, he saw the fear in Shizuru's eyes and Keiko and Youko in a similar situation. Whoever had done this was going to pay dearly when he woke up.

Hiei woke up a short time later, his arms bound behind his back and tied to a beam, the only thing really holding his body in a semi-upright position. He looked to his right to see Youko bound the same way. Seeing that the fox would be fine, Hiei began scanning the rest of the tent for the girls, silently vowing that if anything had been done to them, he would personally mutilate the one responsible.

"Took you long enough to wake up," a voice growled from Hiei's left.

He looked over to see the slave trader push apart a flap in his tent, revealing a small glimpse of an inner room before it fell close behind him. Hiei wanted to rip the demon apart when he saw that Ankoku was only wearing a light robe that wasn't even tied shut and his hair was disheveled.

Noticing the look in Hiei's eyes, Ankoku laughed lightly. "Do not worry. I haven't touched your women..." He told them, sliding his gaze to rest on Youko, "...yet."

He walked around the posts they were tied to, watching with a maniacal glee as they struggled to free themselves of the enchanted bonds he had them tied with. They could struggle all they wanted, and unless someone let them lose, they wouldn't be getting free anytime soon.

"I thought you might like to watch," Ankoku told them once he had made his way to stand in front of the pair, basking in their heated glares. It was always such fun to torture the males by taking their favorite slave in front of them. He was never challenged by any of them.

Hiei and Youko watched as Ankoku snapped his fingers and two guards appeared and pulled aside yet another flap in front of them to reveal Shizuru and Keiko tied to a large bed, completely naked.

Identical, infuriated snarls escaped both bound demons as their efforts to escaped intensified as the desire to rip the leering panther demon limb from limb rose to unbearable heights. Their struggles were in vain as the enhanced ropes only tightened around them, cutting into their skin instead of loosening.

"Why don't you two just sit back, relax and enjoy the show, hm?"

With those taunting words, Ankoku turned and walked over to the bed, his attention now fully on the two naked females that were laid out like a feast for his enjoyment. Keiko whimpered while Shizuru glared defiantly, having had enough of the meek slave act.

Determined to get free and stop Ankoku before he could do any damage to the girls, Youko thought over his options. He had a death plant seed he could manipulate, but if set loose, it might go after Keiko or Shizuru, so that was definitely out. And his hands weren't free to get to his rose whip.

Hiei growled low in his throat, daring the hack demon to lay one threatening hand on his mate. He could already sense the invisible mating mark on her neck flaring to life. He just hoped it keep the demon distracted long enough for him to get lose and save her.

Ankoku leaned between the two luscious beauties and grinned at his luck. He would have liked to test the koorime as well, but these two would keep him satisfied for a few hours. More than long enough to break the spirits of the two demons watching behind him.

His hand hovered over the kitsune's slave's chest, his fingers itching to touch her bare flesh. He waited until he heard the distinct growl from the kitsune behind him and his grin widened as his hand dropped to her right breast. He harshly manipulated her flesh for a few minutes, enjoying her small whimpers of pain, before he turned his attention to the fire demon's slave.

Sensing that the fire demon held more contempt for him, he decided to increase his actions. Already hearing the growl coming from the fire demon, the panther demon dropped his head to her chest. Or at least he tried to. As soon as his lips were an inch from her flesh, a blue flame sprung up from the junction of her shoulder and neck and hit him square in the forehead, knocking him off of her.

Ankoku turned to glare at the fire demon, snarling in anger. "You mated with a slave!?" he demanded.

Hiei smirked at the enraged panther. "Something like that."

"What do you mean 'mated'?" Shizuru demanded, struggling against her bonds to sit up and failed miserably as Ankoku shoved her back against the bed.

"Well, then I'll just have to do something about that," Ankoku sneered before turning his full attention back to the two 'slaves'.

_'We have to do something. NOW,'_ Hiei mentally growled in Youko's mind.

_'I know. I have an idea,'_ Youko responded. He closed his eyes for a moment, and when they opened again, there was a red headed Kurama standing where the silver kitsune Youko had been a second ago.

Pulling his hands free from the now too large ropes, Kurama rubbed his wrists where the ropes had tightened painfully. He untied the rest of the ropes around his body and then moved behind Hiei to free him, keeping an eye on the panther demon as he molested the two girls' bodies.

After Hiei was free, Kurama transformed back into Youko, relieved that Ankoku had been too focused on the girls to notice the changes in his energy.

Youko and Hiei turned their attention back to the panther demon and his unwilling captives and an unholy growl immediately erupted from the Spirit Fox's chest.

During their inattention, while they were freeing themselves from their bonds, Ankoku had climbed on top of Keiko, lavishly licking a path up her quivering body as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut, obviously trying to block out her captor's actions. One clawed hand was trailing dangerously close up Keiko's inner thigh, barely an inch from the center of his intended mate's legs, trampling on forbidden territory.

Shizuru was struggling frantically beside her captive friend, screaming heatedly at the demon. Insults like, "Get away from her you fucking ass hole or I'm going to have you spayed!!" reached Youko's ears, but he seemed to notice this at a distance, because he was already moving... already creating his rose whip. His vision swam red as the picture of that thing that had _dared_ to touch what was his burned in his mind. Moving too fast for the panther to be warned of his intentions, Youko positioned himself behind the trespasser and wrapped his fully formed weapon around the demon's throat, forcefully dragging him away from the terrified Keiko.

"I am going to make you suffer an eternity of a hell you've never imagined." Youko growled menacingly.

Ankoku was struggling with the whip around his throat, the razor sharp thorns to ripping and tearing into the tender flesh, causing blood to flow freely down his chest.

Hiei moved as well, advancing on the panther demon's stunned guards. Blood lust shining in his eyes, he ruthlessly slashed through all of them in an instant, blood splashing across his face. Hiei wasted no time. As the bodies dropped, he quickly moved to the two girls restrained on the bed.

Just then, Yusuke and Kuwabara came bounding in through the front flap of the tent, ready to fight at the drop of a hat and were stunned with what they saw. All the gaurds were dead and Youko had the slave camp ring leader by the neck with his rose whip, though it looked like the panther demon would die of blood loss if he wasn't let loose soon.

Youko, noticing the other spirit detective's entrance, tossed the unconscious panther demon at them, blocking their sight further into the tent. "Take that back to Koenma for us, would you?" he asked, though he didn't give them a chance to answer as he and Hiei disappeared deeper in the tent, closing the flaps behind them.

Yusuke was going to chase after them, and demand that they tell him where Keiko was, but the demon bleeding all over his clothes reminded him that this guy needed to be taken to Koenma first. With a growl, Yusuke tossed the demon over his shoulder and motioned for Kuwabara to follow him.

"No way. What about my sister and Keiko-chan?" Kuwabara demanded.

"I get the feeling those two won't let anything happen to them. They'll be fine when we get home," Yusuke said as he continued out of the tent. "Hiei and Kurama will just have a ton of explaining to do."

Koenma jumped nearly ten feet in the air, which was impressive considering his small stature, when the doors to his office were slammed open forcefully for the second time that day.

"Where do you want this?" Yusuke demanded as he hefted the demon on his shoulder up once again. "And make it quick. He's getting heavy."

"Darn it, Yusuke! Do you have to use violence even when you open a door!?!"

Yusuke glared at the diminutive prince. "Look pacifier breath, either tell me where you want this guy or I'm going to throw him at you and break your nice prissy desk! Now how's _that_ for violence?"

"Oh, alright," Koenma cleared his throat reprovingly. "George!!!!" Immediately, the faithful blue ogre appeared at Koenma's side, looking at his boss questioningly.

"Yes sir?"

"Ogre, I want you to arrange for the Slave trader to be taken to the interrogation room right away." Koenma ordered.

George looked apprehensively at the unconscious demon bleeding profusely in the spirit detective's arms. "Uhh, sir? I-"

"You'll do as I tell you ogre or I'll be forced to punish you again, and you don't want _that_ now do you?" Koenma asked, casting a devious look at the now stuttering ogre.

"NO SIR!" George answered frantically. Quickly, he called for two other ogres to help him and they unloaded the unconscious demon from Yusuke's arms and slowly dragged him out of the room.

As soon as Yusuke had been relieved of the demon, he promptly turned on his heel, Kuwabara right behind him, both muttering about needing to go home and get some explanations from a couple of thieves, with some very colorful language added in.

Hiei had quickly untied Shizuru from the bed and wrapped a silk sheet around her before picking her up and carrying her off, fully intending to take her home, ignoring all questions from her, even the one about her brother. He didn't want to talk. He had to think. He knew she would want to know exactly what the slave trader meant when he had said Hiei had mated with her.

He would have no problem explaining what the slave trader meant. Hiei just didn't know how he would explain why he had. And that was the question he didn't want to answer.

Hiei landed outside Shizuru's home, her larger body held securely in his arms. Noticing that she had fallen asleep, he nudged her shoulder, regretting having to wake her up. She had been through enough because of him in the last few days. She deserved to sleep. And he would let her sleep just as soon as they got inside.

Shizuru blinked awake and looked at Hiei. "What's the matter?" she mumbled, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You need to open your door so we can get inside," Hiei told her, motioning with his head towards her closed and locked front door.

"There's a key under that fake plant in that flower pot," Shizuru told him. "Just make sure you put it back. I doubt baby brother remembered his keys."

Hiei moved to get the key, balancing his mate on his knee while he unlocked the door. Putting the key back in its place, Hiei quickly entered the house and closed the door behind him, making sure to lock it before he continued further.

Five steps into the house, Shizuru mumbled, "take off your shoes," and Hiei paused long enough to kick off his boots.

He found his way to her room, after opening a few wrong doors, and pulled back the covers to place his mate in her bed. He was prepared to pull back and just watch her sleep from a corner in the room, but her arms around his neck forced him to stay close, and he ended up curling up on the bed next to her, falling asleep soon after.

Youko clenched his fists tightly, drawing blood from his palms as his sharp talons scored the flesh, and enjoyed the pain.

He deserved it.

She had come to harm, had almost been raped, and he had failed to stop it. He, Youko Kurama, had failed in his promise. Now, all he could do was stare fixatedly upon the face of the girl he had sworn to protect, her face contorted in fear as she continued to keep her eyes clenched shut.

_'We both failed her, Youko.'_ Shuichi said quietly.

_**No, I failed her. I failed to protect her... and that is unacceptable.**_ Youko replied in a dead voice.

His heart was constricting painfully at the pathetic sight that Keiko made on the bed, but he still could not bring himself to get any closer to her...

_**Shuichi, please... take care of her.**_ Youko whispered before he retreated into the darkest depths of their consciousness.

With a small gust of wind, Kurama returned to his human form, his gaze filled with sorrow and pain as they looked upon Keiko. Kneeling beside her, he gently smoothed one hand over her scrunched up brow. This caused Keiko to whimper and tense up even more.

"Sssshhhh... it's alright... it's over. I'm here... you're alright, Keiko..." he whispered soothingly, never stopping his loving caress over her delicate skin.

Keiko's brow immediately smoothed out and she slowly opened her eyes, blinking dazedly.

"K-Kurama?" she whispered in a small, frightened voice.

Kurama felt something inside him break at hearing such fear in her voice. Unable to bear it, he scooped her up into his arms as he buried his face into her neck.

"Please, forgive me, Keiko..." he whispered raggedly, wrapping his arms tightly around his lover as if he could meld her body to his and keep her safe forever.

He felt her arms wrap tightly around his neck as she began sobbing against him. Something inside him felt as if it were dying with every sob and tear that she shed. So he stayed there with her wrapped in his arms, his mouth never leaving her ear as he whispered words of love while his hands softly caressed her back in long, soothing motions. This action seemed to calm her and soon her trembling subsided and she stopped shaking altogether.

Even though her shaking had stopped, Kurama never ceased the action of his hands or his words. "It's going to be alright... I'll never leave you, I swear it! I'll protect you... Please, stay with me..."

Suddenly, Keiko leaned away from him and Kurama unconsciously tightened his hold on her, afraid to let her go. Lifting her face to look at him, he could see her eyelashes were sodden with tears, making them sparkle in the light.

"Thank you... for saving me..." she said softly.

Kurama was sure that he had heard wrong. How could she forgive him? Bu soon, the question was answered for him whether he liked it or not when she leaned forward with a sob and placed a fervent kiss upon his lips.

Momentarily shocked, Kurama soon recovered and returned her kiss desperately, pouring all of his love and fear into it. After a minute, they broke apart and Kurama reached for a nearby sheet and carefully wrapped Keiko in it like the most precious of packages.

Placing a soft kiss upon her lips once more, Kurama whispered, "Lets go home...together."

Keiko simply nodded and cuddled into his arms as he rose and carried her out of the tent, cradling her to his body closely.

Ignoring the rest of the inhabitants of the camp; those that had not vacated the area upon Ankoku's capture, that is, Kurama bounded off in the direction that Hiei had previously taken. Intent on taking his delicate flower as far away from the horrible memories as he possibly could, the kitsune moved gracefully as he made his way back to the portal to the Ningenkai.

The second that his feet touched ningen soil, Kurama used his demon speed to make it to Keiko's home in record time. Her parents must have been gone, if the lack of vehicle in the driveway as well as lack of any internal lights in the house were any indication.

He glanced down tenderly at the now slumbering girl in his arms, not wanting to wake her for nothing in the world, but knowing he had to in order to gain entrance into her home.

Jostling her gently, Kurama couldn't help but smile as she looked up at him with sleep filled eyes. The moonlight filtering down caused her eyes to shine, giving them the appearance of pools of dark chocolate.

"Keiko," he whispered, when her gaze turned questioning. "I need you to unlock the door. I don't think that your parents would appreciate me using my special skills on their door locks, now would they?" he made his words teasing, wanting to lighten the mood and possibly make her smile.

His efforts won him more than he could have hoped for when she giggled softly and buried her face in his chest. "Kurama... you wouldn't!"

"I would..." he began meaningfully, a slight smile curving his lips as he continued, "...for you, Keiko, I would."

Keiko's smile widened as she looked up at him again. "Well, my dear thief, I don't believe that will be necessary." she said, her voice thankfully devoid of any fear whatsoever.

Kurama arched an eyebrow at her. "Oh? And why do you say that?"

Keiko snickered as she glanced up and over in the direction of her bedroom window meaningfully.

Kurama followed her gaze, his eyes drifting shut as a slight blush rose to his cheeks as he noticed the glass plated window was thrown open welcomingly.

Sighing softly, Kurama offered Keiko a quick smile. "As you wish."

Without another word, Kurama braced his legs and propelled Keiko and himself to her open window. Keiko gave a loud squeaked and clutched to him tighter. Once they landed safely onto her window-sill (which thankfully had a window bench beneath it) Kurama chuckled softly at the girl still hiding her face in his neck.

"Well, it was _your_ idea" he said softly, the barest hint of amusement lacing his voice as he made his way to her bed.

Keiko pulled back and huffed indignantly. "You could have warned me that you were about to do that!"

Kurama couldn't suppress a chuckle from escaping. " I'm sorry...I suppose that I will have to make it up to you." he said, placing her on the soft mattress before pulling her coverlette up over her.

At his words, Keiko's face took on a soft expression, her eyes searching out his when he began to straighten. Her hands stalled him though, latching onto his forearms in an almost desperate grip. "Don't..." she began, a bit panicked, but managed to calm her voice again before continuing. "Please... don't go."

Kurama did not reply vocally. Instead, he wordlessly crawled into bed beside the woman he loved, pausing only long enough to remove his shoes before wrapping her once again in his arms. The couple remained cuddled that way as the night progressed; sleep finally overtaking them only moments after final words of love for one another were whispered into the darkness.


	8. Chapter 8

_- Chapter 11 -_

_"Please... don't go." _

_Kurama did not reply vocally. Instead, he wordlessly crawled into bed beside the woman he loved, pausing only long enough to remove his shoes before wrapping her once again in his arms. The couple remained cuddled that way as the night progressed; sleep finally overtaking them only moments after final words of love for one another were whispered into the darkness._

Hiei blinked his eyes as he woke up in completely unfamiliar territory. He obviously wasn't in a tree, and he knew he wasn't in a tent at the slave camp. Then, as the fog cleared, he remembered the details of the previous night and looked down at the still slumbering Shizuru. A small smile crept onto his features as he noticed the way she was snuggled up against him.

Even though she would be mad at him when she woke up and he explained what he had done, she obviously accepted him, in some way or another. Some unconscious level. Hiei just hoped she would accept him on a conscious level.

Hiei leaned back down on Shizuru's bed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, noticing that she was still only wrapped in the sheet he had grabbed from the slave traders. His nose wrinkled as he picked up the disgusting scent that covered the sheet. Wanting to remove the scent from near his mate, he unwrapped the sheet from around her body and tossed it towards her door.

Covering her body back up with her own sheets, he snuggled down into the bed to relax against her as he let his mind wander. He knew that no matter what her response to him was, he would stay close by and protect her from anything. But he didn't want to think about what would happen if she didn't accept his mark and claim on her.

Just as he was about to drift back to sleep, he felt her beginning to stir against him. He knew she would be awake in a few moments.

"What are you still doing here?" Shizuru demanded, still snuggled up against his chest.

"I wanted to make sure you were okay," Hiei told her, his arm around her shoulder holding her tightly against him.

"Well, since you're still here. You mind telling me what the hell that demon guy was talking about last night when he said you mated with me?" Shizuru demanded, sitting up while making sure to hold the sheet to her chest.

Hiei sat up as well, though he didn't look at her. "He meant the mark on your neck, from when I bit you," he told her.

"What?! You guys said it was just temporary," Shizuru raged.

"Not the first one. The one from when I bit you in the hot spring," Hiei clarified.

"Oh," Shizuru said, blushing at the memory of what had happened before he had bit her. "So what does it mean?" she questioned.

"You are now my mate. It represents the same kind of thing as marriage is for humans," he explained.

"So I don't get a say in this? You just screw me and then think you can bind me to you for life?" she demanded to know.

Hiei fought smiling. At least he knew she didn't believe in divorce. "You can reject me, but the same thing that happened to Ankoku when he tried to touch you will happen with others."

After letting his words sink in for a moment, he leaned over and took her chin in his hand, making her look at him. "But tell me one thing," Hiei told her as he leaned close enough to take her lips in a gentle kiss. He nibbled on her lower lip for a second before she opened her mouth to him in a gasp, and he slipped his tongue inside her mouth.

When they were both in need of air, he pulled back, still keeping her chin in his hand. "Do you really want to give me, and that, up because I was a little impulsive?" Hiei asked her.

Shizuru glared at him, though it was made less intimidating by her flushed cheeks and panting breath. "You could have asked me before you did it," she told him, still out of breath from his intense kiss.

"Not exactly. I didn't know I was going to do it until almost after I had bitten you," Hiei told her.

Shizuru shook her head at him. "What am I going to do with you?" she asked, a slight laugh in her voice.

"Does that mean you'll accept me as your mate," Hiei asked, not letting his hope shine through in his voice.

Shizuru nodded. "I suppose I can put up with you."

Hiei grinned wickedly at her. "Good, cause there have been things I've been wanting to do to you all night."

Shizuru smirked. "What kinds of things?" she asked; hoping none of them involved her on her knees.

"Here. Let me show you," Hiei growled possessively as he pounced on her, knocking on onto her back with him straddling her hips.

Hiei leaned down and began to lavish kisses along Shizuru's jaw line before trailing down her neck to where he'd made his mark on her. The tattoo was beginning to appear, flaring with the light blue glow against her pale skin. Hiei traced it with his tongue before moving further down her body.

Shizuru moaned as his tongue traced her collarbone, her hands going up to his shoulders, and was disappointed to find he was still fully clothed. Well, she would just have to do something about that. Her fingers found the clasp for his cloak and quickly removed that from his body, glad to find that he wore no shirt underneath. She trailed her fingertips along the contours of his body, delighting in the feel of his sculpted muscles dancing underneath his skin.

Hiei nipped playfully at Shizuru's flesh as her fingers moved to his nipples, tweaking them, almost hinting at what she wanted. Not one to deny his mate, Hiei lowered his head to her right breast and suckled greedily, his hand moving to her other mound to imitate his mouth's actions.

Shizuru gasped as his mouth switched breasts, her body arching up into him, giving her mate better access to her body. But he was still too clothed for her liking. Her hands trailed down his back to the front of his waist, her hands searching out the belt buckles she knew would be there.

Her fingers made short work of the only thing securing his pants to his waist, and she shoved the offending pants down his hips, surprised to find that he went commando. Though, she never did see any signs of underwear under his pants. Not that she ever looked.

Hiei pulled away long enough to rid himself of the pants completely and then leaned down and took her lips in a heated kiss. "Impatient, aren't we," He teased as he nipped her nose.

Shizuru growled at him. "Yes. Now hurry up. I don't want my brother walking in on us," She ordered, her arms going around his neck to pull him down for a demanding kiss.

Hiei smirked. He knew the baka wouldn't be there for a while. They had to drop the unconscious demon off and then make their way all the way back to the human world. He had plenty of time. But if his mate wanted a quickie, who was he to deny her her pleasure.

Trailing a hand down to the vee of her thighs, Hiei tested her wetness with teasing fingers. Shizuru moaned at his touch and arched against his hand. He could feel the evidence of her arousal dampen his hand and knew she was ready for him. Rising above her slightly, Hiei positioned himself at her entrance, sliding the length of him against her slick folds teasingly.

In the mood to see her pant a little bit more, Hiei grabbed his shaft and instead of entering her body he firmly rubbed it against her clit. Shizuru's voice was a mix between a growl and a moan and Hiei smiled smugly at the sound.

_'Lets see if we can't get her to moan a little louder...'_ Hiei thought to himself.

Quickly, he placed his thumb on her clit, in replace of his cock, and partially entered her, so that only the tip was inside. Gritting his teeth against the urge to just surge inside her welcoming body, he instead moved inside just a little more before withdrawing, all the while massaging her clit with his thumb.

Repeatedly teasing her with these inadequate, shallow thrusts, Hiei was rewarded for his efforts when his mate moaned loudly beneath him. Reveling in that sound, he noticed a moment too late that it had been accompanied by her legs locking firmly around his waist as her hips surged up to slam against his, effectively burying his length deep inside her.

Hiei shuddered at the sensation her unexpected action brought. Leaning forward, he grabbed her hips tightly and withdrew once more and then slammed hard into her body.

"You _are_ impatient...aren't you," Hiei growled approvingly between slow, hard thrusts.

Shizuru arched her back as she met the pounding of his hips. " You were...ugh! Taking too...long," She panted.

"Hhmmmm... Then, I'll just have to speed things up..."

And suddenly, he was lifting her legs over his shoulders, entering impossibly deep into her body. Shizuru cried out as the warm friction between their joined bodies suddenly tripled when her demon lover used some of his unholy speed to quicken his pace.

"Oh - OH, GOD! HIEI - UHNN!" She screamed.

Everything in her body was winding impossibly tight and she felt like she was about to explode. Hiei felt his mate's inner walls clench around him, heralding her oncoming orgasm. Sweat beginning to glaze over his body; he increased the pressure of his thrusts even more, needing to feel every inch of her hot flesh around him. Suddenly, her body arched sharply, her hands clawing desperately at his arms as her body tightened, muscles contorting pleasurably in powerful spasms.

Hiei let out an animalistic growl as he watched her face as she came. One, two, three hard thrusts and he felt his own wave of pleasure wash over him as he released his seed into his mate's body. Her tight walls were still constricting impossibly tight, and it prolonged both of their orgasms in sweet agony till they were both left weak and panting.

Small tremors still coursing through both of them, Hiei lowered Shizuru's legs and collapsed on top of her, resting his forehead in the valley between her breasts as he fought to even out his breathing.

Why did he always lose control when he mated with this particular female? What was it about her that caused his blood to heat and his passion to rise in a way that no one else before her had ever achieved. Glancing up, Hiei studied his mate as she struggled with her own breathing.

Face flushed, a fine sheen of perspiration glistening all over her body, her well rounded chest rising and falling with each breath... To him, she was the most enticing thing he had ever seen.

Hiei adjusted the sheets that had been nearly knocked off the bed so that they were once again covered and rested with his head on one breast while his tongue lazily licked over the other. He could feel her shuddering underneath him, around him, and he grinned with male pride that he did this to her.

He was about to tell her to rest some more, but was interrupted when the door to her room was flung open, revealing the orange haired young man.

"Kazuma, don't you know how to knock?" Shizuru yelled at her younger brother, gripping the sheet, and Hiei's head, to her chest.

"I was worried about you. Koenma said he sent you on a mission. I can't believe you'd be so stupid," Kuwabara chastised.

"This coming from the man that has nearly died because he thought it would help Yusuke win some fights," Hiei droned from underneath the sheet.

Before Kuwabara could even process that it was Hiei's voice, something whizzed past his head and imbedded itself in the wall next to his head. He turned to his left; slightly apprehensive of what he might find, and nearly jumped twenty feet in the air when he saw Hiei's katana buried at least six inches in the wall.

Peeking into the hallway, he shrieked when he saw two inches of the tip sticking out into the hall.

"Hiei, no maiming my baby brother," Shizuru mumbled as she wrapped her arms around her mate and pulled the sheet over her head.

"I won't if he leaves us alone," Hiei replied, gently nipping her collarbone.

"Uhh, sure," Kuwabara backed out of the room, closing the door in front of him, keeping his eyes on the lump on his sisters bed until the door blocked his view. He turned to leave, thinking he would talk to Yusuke, and squeaked and ran when he saw the katana still protruding from the wall.

Kurama could feel the warm sunshine filtering through the open window, bathing the bed that he and Keiko both occupied. He could feel Keiko curled up against his side and wanted nothing more than to remain there forever in her arms.

_**But we can't.**_ Youko's deep voice, still echoing his previous dead tone, conveyed to his human counterpart.

Sighing deeply, Kurama began to disengage himself from Keiko's arms, intending on leaving before she awoke. Before he could accomplish his task, however, the red head felt a soft grip take hold of his forearm, stilling his retreat. Turning his gaze back toward the bed's other occupant, his eyes locked with Keiko's own sleep filled ones.

"Where do you think your going?" she questioned, stifling a yawn.

Kurama hid his 'deer caught in the headlights' feeling and plastered on a smile for her sake. "I was .. uh .. just going to... uh," he stuttered, trying to think of a good excuse. He never was any good with pop quizzes first thing in the morning.

"Leave?" Keiko questioned, eyebrow arched.

"Yes," Kurama sighed as he sat on the edge of her bed. "I didn't want to face you this morning. I ... We failed you last night," he said, his head hanging, not looking at her at all.

"I thought I told you last night. You didn't fail me. You stopped him before he really did anything to me. I think I'm going to need about a dozen showers to get his dirt off me, but otherwise, I'm fine," Keiko reassured him.

Keiko moved so that she sat behind him, not caring that she left the sheet behind on her bed. Once she was free of the silky material, she threw it away from her bed and wrapped her arms around Kurama's shoulders, leaning against his back.

Kurama tensed when he realized that Keiko was kneeling behind him, completely naked, hugging him. He honestly didn't know what to do. He couldn't take advantage of her; she was probably still traumatized from the night before, and that was the only reason she was acting like this. But if that was the case, he couldn't just leave her there alone. So he did the only reasonable thing he could think of at the moment; he raised his hands and covered hers with his own, offering her what little strength he could.

Kurama's mind just could not wrap around the idea that she would still be interested in him; he had broken a very important promise to her. Even the usually sex-crazed Youko was quiet; feeling just as guilty, if not worse, for his inability to protect the woman behind him.

Keiko leaned her head down, resting her chin upon Kurama's shoulder.

"Keiko, I..." Kurama began, but found that words failed him.

"Kurama, just because you got to me a little late doesn't mean I love you any less," Keiko told him, trying to soothe the young man's/old demon's fears, catching what had come out of her mouth after she had said it. She couldn't take it back and she didn't want to. She loved him, and it was time he knew it.

Kurama stiffened at Keiko's words. Had he heard her right? Had she _really_ said what he thought she'd said? Turning ever so slightly, Kurama glanced over as he tried to see the expression that was evident on her face.

"You... you love me?" his awed whisper ruffled her hair as he spoke.

She smiled tentatively. "You really think I would have put myself through everything that I did if I didn't love you? Especially Youko. He's quite insatiable," Keiko joked, her mouth right by Kurama's ear causing her breath to blow over his sensitive flesh.

"But, I broke my promise to protect you," Kurama whispered, his voice sounding almost like a whimper.

"And you think that because you were tied up with ropes the Godzilla couldn't break through, that you're somehow unworthy?" she asked, nuzzling her nose into the crook of his neck, inhaling his comforting scent.

"I never should have allowed myself to be distracted enough to get knocked out in the first place," Kurama growled out.

"But you were distracted by me. To think that I could make the great thief, Youko Kurama, distracted enough that someone snuck up on him is very thrilling for me," Keiko told him, a smile in her voice.

"But ..." Kurama began to protest, but was stopped when Keiko pulled him back so that he was laying on his back with her straddling his hips.

Keiko grabbed both of Kurama's hands and pinned them above his head so that he couldn't move.

"I don't care. Whatever excuse you have, I don't care what it is. I love you, you baka fox, and there's nothing that could ever make me change my mind," She told him.

To prove her point, she lowered her head until her lips with less than an inch from his, her eyes intently watching his as she lowered the last little bit. As she felt him relax into the kiss some, she allowed her eyes to slide closed, her hands moving to his shoulders.

With his hands free, Kurama grabbed Keiko's shoulders, rolled them over, and regrettably pulled away from her lips. "I'm sorry, Keiko, but I can't."

Keiko could feel Kurama's reluctance and knew it was actually the fox spirit that was resisting. She was quite sure that Shuichi would rather stay right where he was without protest. Determined to make the stubborn kitsune see reason, she reached up and cupped Kurama's face with her hands, forcing him to look at her directly.

"I want to talk to Youko." she stated firmly, determination burning in her soft brown gaze.

Noticing the look that Keiko had often used against Yusuke while they were dating, Kurama knew he had no other choice than to do as she had requested. Closing his eyes a moment, he allowed the change to overtake his human body, conforming it to that of the silver kitsune spirit within him.

Almost reluctantly, the fox's eyelids opened to reveal sorrow-filled amber pools that stared down at her with a mixture of longing and regret.

"Keiko-" he began, intending on telling her once more how sorry he was and how unworthy he felt. He was no better at protecting her than Yusuke had been. If it hadn't worked out between them, then how could it possibly work for them?

Keiko cut him off though, knowing what was running through his mind. It had entered hers too, though only briefly, as he'd been taking her through the portal home.

"Don't even start, Youko. I know what you're thinking. It's not the same. Yusuke was more concerned with beating the demon than he was with saving me. That's what makes you and Yusuke different. You have different priorities," she told him, her thumbs brushing over his cheeks, tears welling up in her eyes and spilling over.

"And I make you cry," Youko responded, averting his eyes from hers.

"Only because I'm afraid of losing you. Not just you or Shuichi. All of you. I don't know what I would do without you in my life," Keiko said, tears freely falling from her eyes.

It seemed like an eternity before Youko's eyes redirected their gaze back to her. She knew he had been contemplating, as he always seemed to do when faced with an important decision, and could tell he had definitely come to one when their eyes met.

Keiko felt as if her heart were shattering in her chest when she saw such a look of defeat in the proud fox demon's eyes. "I am sorry, Keiko. I love you, but... I cannot risk you getting hurt again due to my inept abilities to protect you." With a final whispered "I'm sorry." Youko began to pull away again.

Keiko, in a last ditch effort to keep her from leaving her, brought her hands up from his shoulders to capture the sensitive tips of his ears and began to stroke them in earnest. She was rewarded when Youko stilled suddenly as the all to familiar pleasant sensation sprang forth and spread throughout his body. With wide eyes, Youko stared down at the woman beneath him who was obviously not about to let him go so easily.

Youko whimpered, leaning into her touch. "Keiko, what are you doing?" he asked, his saddened eyes looking at her.

"I'm not going to let you leave me. You would hurt me more than anyone else possibly could if you leave me now," Keiko told him, fresh tears coming to her eyes as she increased her efforts on his ear.

Youko gasped at what she said and looked her in the eyes, looking for the truth behind her words. Finding nothing but love and honesty in her eyes, he knew she couldn't possibly be lying. But he never wanted her to be in danger again. But if he walked away now, he would be hurting her. How could he protect her from himself?

"I don't care if I get wounded in the future, as long as you're there to take care of me while I heal," Keiko confessed. "I said I love you, and I don't know what else to do to get you to stay with me."

Keiko tossed her other arm around his neck as she buried her face in his shoulder as she cried. As a last resort, she trailed her hands down his back until she reached the waist of his pants, and her hand slipped inside his pants, quickly finding the base of his tail. "I don't want you to leave me, please," She begged into his shoulder as her fingers began to massage the furry appendage.

Youko groaned as he wrapped his arms around her torso and kissed her cheek. "I promise," He whispered as he nipped at her neck. "I'm yours, now and always," He confessed. He threw himself off balance so that they both landed on their sides on her bed and caught her lips in a chaste kiss.

"Good..." Keiko whispered against his lips. "good."

Youko continued to kiss her tenderly, not attempting to deepen this kiss, just simply relishing the softness of her lips against his own. After a few moments of this, Keiko grew restless beneath him. Allowing her hands to stray from his tail and ear that she had been rubbing, they began the tedious process of relieving the fox of his clothing. Youko pulled back, his lips quirking at the longing look in her eyes. Keiko returned his gaze and practically growled as she continued to tug at his clothes.

"You've got too many clothes on." she stated as her hands finally slipped the top from his shoulders before returning to massage the sculpted muscles of his back.

Youko chuckled darkly as he rose up and removed the top completely, flinging it across the room before turning his attention back to Keiko. Leaning down to kiss her again, this time his tongue also came into play, parting her lips and delving into the sweetness within, drawing a contented sigh from his partner.

Keiko's hands gradually made their way down his back, but pouted when her hands met with the cloth of his pants still covering him. Tugging on the material with a growl, she tried to relieve the fox of his pants, but stopped when she heard his chuckle. "You've still got more clothes on than I do," She complained, tugging on the waist of his pants once more.

Youko chuckled at her again, shaking his head as he took her hands from his waist. "You're too impatient. You need to relax," He told her as he pinned her hands above her head, leaning down to kiss her again.

Keiko sighed happily into Youko's mouth, responding to the kiss immediately. Getting an idea, she hooked her legs around his waist, pulling him closer to her body. Locking her ankles behind his back, she used her legs as leverage to grind her hips against his.

Youko groaned at the pleasurable torture. "You're cruel," he groaned against her neck.

"No... just desperate to have you inside of me again." she said, surprising both Youko as well as herself at her bold statement.

"You fight dirty, you know that?"

Keiko giggled. "But you love me anyway..."

Youko growled as he pulled away to pull his pants off. He moved back to hover over her body, a cocky smirk on his face as he bumped up against her wet heat.

Not caring if she seemed wanton or not (there just simply wasn't any other option when she was naked and in bed with Youko) Keiko wrapped her legs more firmly around his waist and lifted her hips until she felt the tip of him push into her slightly and moaned happily.

Youko hissed in pleasure as he sank deeper into her scorching depths, the tightness of her serving to fuel the fire of raging desire he had been fighting to hold back since she'd first begun to massage his ears and tail. Moving his hands to her hips, he grasped her firmly to him as he proceeded to sink into her welcoming heat at an agonizingly slow pace.

Keiko's moans intensified and her head began to thrash back and forth as the kitsune continued to torture her at his leisure. "You ... ko," Keiko managed to groan out. "Quit teas ..." Her sentence was cut off as all the air in her lungs rushed out as Youko plunged his length the rest of the way in.

As he began to thrust, hands firmly in place on her hips, Youko leaned down to take her right nipple into his mouth. He gently nipped at the flesh before soothing the little red marks with his tongue.

Keiko's lungs emptied as she let out a low moan. Thrusting her hands into Youko's long, lush hair, she tugged on it in effort to hold him closer as he continued to nuzzle and nip at her breasts. The pleasure he was giving her was almost unbearable and she tightened her legs around him, arching up to meet him for every thrust as her inner muscles convulsed around him, teasing him.

Youko raised his head, letting out a harsh growl at the erotic sensation he was experiencing as her vaginal walls continued to milk his pistoning length. She had never done that before!

Keiko gasped as Youko hit a particularly deep spot. Being struck with an idea, she moved a hand to the top of his head and began massaging one of his ears. Youko growled as he felt his peek building. Wanting to make Keiko come before he did, he increased his speed, moving a hand between them where their bodies met, and began rubbing her clit.

Keiko let out a gasp of surprise, her body beginning to quiver as she felt herself reach and begin to fall over the edge of oblivion. She tried to hold on, to make the feeling last longer. She did not want to give it up, but she knew her time was growing short. Determined to last at least as long as Youko, she tightened her hold on Youko, refusing to let him go or the sensation he was causing within her. Youko continued his ministrations, increasing his pace as he gave her everything he had...and more.

Youko moved his head to her neck, nuzzling it as he felt the vibrations of her moans of pleasure. Mind drowning in a fog of passion, it finally focused on one simple thought: _Mark her. Make her mine. Forever._

With her hot sheath clenching him tightly in her try to hold out longer, Youko felt his control slipping. Thrusting in deeply one last time, he let himself fall over the edge of oblivion, knowing she would follow him. He sank his fangs into her neck as he came, infusing the fresh wound with his power, claiming her as his mate.

Keiko felt Youko lose control, and couldn't hold back anymore. She came and she came hard. To muffle her scream, she bit down on the closest thing to her mouth, which happened to be Youko's shoulder. Her teeth broke through the skin, but neither of them noticed it immediately.

After Youko recovered from his orgasm, he pulled his fangs from Keiko's flesh and gently licked the spot as the wound healed and the form of his mark took its place on her neck. He noticed that Keiko had also somehow managed to bury her teeth in his shoulder and smirked. His attention drew back to her neck as the claiming tattoo finally emerged.

There, blazoned across her neck was the image of a long stemmed, red rose, its petals closed tightly into a tender bud.

Yusuke growled under his breath as he used his spare key to get in the back door of Keiko's home. _'That baka fox better not have let anything happen to her,'_ Yusuke thought sourly as he made his way upstairs, towards her room.

"Keiko, where the hell are you?" Yusuke yelled as he roughly pushed open her bedroom door.

He stopped dead in his tracks when the sight before him was processed fully in his mind. There was the red headed Kurama in bed with Keiko, her snuggled peacefully against his side as she used his shoulder for a pillow.

"Yusuke, do you think you could possibly keep your voice down?" Kurama asked in a quiet voice.

"The hell I will. What are you doing in ..." Yusuke had started yelling, but was cut short when something whizzed past his head, brushing against his hair. He turned to the wall behind the door and his eyes bugged out when he saw a red rose embedded in the wall almost directly behind him.

As Yusuke was gawking at the rose that had obviously been launched warningly at him, Keiko finally roused from her bout of exhaustion due to her and Kurama's previous activities. She snuggled against the warm body beside her, opening her eyes as she did. The first sight to register was that of Yusuke Urameshi standing across the room near her bedroom door. Keiko's eyes widened and she squeaked in surprised embarrassment, realizing she was still naked beneath her sheets, not to mention cuddled up beside an equally naked Kurama.

With a mortified moan, Keiko proceeded to burrow beneath the sheets to hide her suddenly flushed face. Keiko's noises drew Yusuke's attention, and he noticed the girl burying herself under her sheet while Kurama smiled at her.

"Well, as you can see, Yusuke, your presence is disturbing my mate. I would appreciate it if you would leave us alone now," Kurama said, the smile still on his lips, but there was a warning glint in his eyes.

Yusuke glared defiantly. He didn't want to leave, but Keiko seemed like she felt more protected around the fox, and he didn't exactly want to see what Kurama would do to him if he didn't leave. "You better not hurt her, Kurama," he warned. With an angry growl, Yusuke left the room, closing the door, and went back outside, making sure the door was locked before he turned to head home.

_Epilogue_

"Is he gone yet?" Keiko's voice drifted, somewhat muffled, from beneath the bed sheets.

"Yes, it's safe now," Kurama replied, a smile in his voice.

"It's not funny, Kurama." Keiko pouted, knowing that the source of her embarrassment was the source of his amusement.

"I know, but you're just so cute," he chided.

"Oh, really," Keiko finally brought her head out from beneath the sheet. "Why do you say that?"

Kurama fought back a laugh when he saw Keiko's tousled hair sticking up here and there. "Because I said so," He told her, tweaking her nose with a smile.

Keiko blushed and buried her face in Kurama's chest. Nuzzling the chiseled surface, she lovingly began to apply kisses here and there before glancing up at him. Kurama's eyes were closed, his lips parted slightly as he lay there, thoroughly enjoying her ministrations.

"I love you. You know that, right?" she whispered against his flesh.

"How could I not?" he asked, pulling her up his body. "I love you, too," Kurama told her before their lips connected in a sweet kiss.

"Hey, Urameshi, wait up," Kuwabara yelled as he jogged to catch up with the spirit detective.

Yusuke turned his gaze up from the sidewalk he had been glowering at ever since he'd left the scene at Keiko's house. "Hey Kuwabara, how'd things go with Shizuru?"

Kuwabara rubbed the back of his head, slowing down once he caught up with his friend. "Uh, well, she's fine," he responded, "Though I think she needs her head examined," he added quietly.

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?" Yusuke asked in bewilderment.

"I found her in bed with Hiei," Kuwabara mumbled, shaking his head in disbelief.

"WHAT!?"

"Yeah. He threw his sword at my head when I walked in on them. At least they were covered by the sheet," he relayed, his cheeks reddening dramatically.

Yusuke could feel his eyebrow twitching spasmically. "Shizuru... in bed... with HIEI?!" He shook his head. "I guess I shouldn't be too shocked. I just walked in on Keiko and Kurama."

"What's so bad about that?" Kuwabara asked.

"Theeey were pretty much in the same position as your sister and Hiei..."

"Huh. What did you get thrown at your head?" Kuwabara asked sarcastically.

"One of his damned roses," Yusuke grumbled, a bit embarrassed.

Kuwabara snickered. "Makes me feel a little better about having a sword thrown at my head," he mumbled as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Hey, Urameshi, you mind if I stay at your place for a few days? Hiei and my sister make a scary pair."

"Sure, why not."

"Come on, I didn't get any breakfast this morning. I kinda got kicked out of my house right after I got there," Kuwabara said.

Yusuke agreed and together they headed towards his home in hopes of finding some food.

_**The End**_


End file.
